Kun Sha had a body that was 10,000 metres long, but the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider was not far behind. The two giants used their respective Divine Abilities, engaging each other in an intense melee. The ground was shattered and the surrounding space warped. The World Energy in a radius of several tens of thousands of kilometres was thrown into chaos by their battle.
The strength of the two Divine Spirits was almost at the same level and both were living in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. This should not be the first time they were fighting either as it seemed they understood each other very well and killing moves were unleashed incessantly, sending chills down the spines of those who stood witness.
But after watching for a while, Yang Kai realized that Kun Sha was most likely not the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider’s opponent. Just as the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider said, Kun Sha was a Divine Spirit born from the sea. She may not be his opponent if they were fighting in the depths of the ocean, but she had the upper hand on land.
Threads of spider silk that were strong enough to seal the world were gradually woven into a web. Even someone as strong as Kun Sha could not extricate himself from it. It seemed that Kun Sha would be completely defeated the moment the spider web was fully formed.
Kun Sha obviously realized this as well. Shaking his head, he opened his big bloody mouth and bit down on a weak point, tearing apart tens of thousands of spider threads. Then, he turned back to human form and rushed out of the gap, fleeing quickly.
His voice echoed from afar, “Zhu Jiu Yin, don’t feel smug just because you have beaten me today! We will cross paths again at the Spirit Seizing War! When the time comes, let’s see who will have the last laugh!”
The Heavenly Moon Demon Spider did not stop him when she saw him leave. Her huge spider body distorted and transformed, turning back into the harmless innocent girl from before. Standing with her hands behind her back, she gazed into the distance.
A hundred or so kilometres away, in the middle of a spider web, Yang Kai and the others watched on in horror.
The unrestrained might of the two Divine Spirits was beyond their imagination. Even in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, they could exert strength surpassing that of the Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm, which may have something to do with the fact that they were born here, but also the fact that their strength itself was incredible.
But no matter what, the might of a Divine Spirit was unstoppable!
The girl turned around and arrived in front of Yang Kai and the others in a few hops. She studied Yang Kai with a smile, a scrutinizing look present in her beautiful eyes, looking ever more satisfied as if she were a maiden, looking at her lover.
Yang Kai felt his scalp tingle as he decided to ask, “Senior, what do you want from me?”
The girl smiled, “Don’t worry, I won’t kill you, nor will I let someone else kill you. You are very useful to me, but this is not the place to talk. Let’s go back first.”
Raising her hand, she retrieved her web. Yang Kai and the others regained their freedom, but they did not even think of escaping as in front of an existence of this level, that would be foolish. They could only follow behind her obediently as they headed back to the Star City.
Hundreds of thousands of kilometres away, Kun Sha suddenly stopped with a furious look on his face, “How dare that bitch spoil my good deed! Now that that cheap slut Zhu Jiu Yin has her eyes on that stinking brat, I won’t be able to get my hands on him… Hm, I wonder if that other brat is dead yet.”
Saying so, he spat something out of his mouth.
It was none other than Lin Feng whom he had swallowed up before.
“Hm, you’re still alive? Good. At least you have some ability!” Kun Sha’s eyes lit up. He discovered that though the brat named Lin Feng was pale-faced, he was completely unharmed. Only, the light golden layer protecting him had been corroded by digestive juices and could break at any moment.
Lin Feng himself obviously did not have the ability to withstand the corrosive power of Kun Sha’s gastric juices, so he must have used one of the treasures given by his Elders to save his life.
Suddenly released, Lin Feng gasped and coughed heavily.
Before he could recover from his shock though, he heard Kun Sha’s mighty voice, “Boy, you’ve passed this King’s test. You are now qualified to become this King’s Bearer. Over the next few years, this King will carefully nurture you. Then, you must do one thing for this King. If you do it well, you will be spared. If not, then obediently become food for this King.”
Lin Feng looked up and stared blankly at him. His mind was still blank from surviving that previous encounter, even to the point where he could not process what Kun Sha was saying to him.
But Kun Sha didn’t care. He simply grabbed Ling Feng by the collar and carried him to the sea.
In the main hall of Yang Kai’s residence, the girl wandered about, touching this and that, as if everything was novel to her.
Yang Kai and the others stood at the entrance, not even daring to breathe loudly.
Even though this Heavenly Moon Demon Spider said before that she would not kill him, who knows whether this devilish woman would actually keep her word? If she really made a move, then no one would be able to resist.
Chen Yue suddenly ran in from outside and said in a small voice, “Sir, Scarlet Star’s Managers have come seeking an audience.”
Everyone was watching as the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider led Yang Kai back to the Star City, so how could Chen Tian Fei and the others sit still when something so terrifying suddenly appeared in their home? Naturally, they had to rush over to pay their respects.
Yang Kai raised his head to look at the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider.
The girl waved her hand, “Make them leave.” She looked extremely impatient.
Chen Yue shrunk her neck and excused herself respectfully.
The girl finally stopped moving and turned her head to look at Yang Kai with a smile, “Where is Da Lang’s corpse?”
“Da Lang?” Yang Kai was stunned, [What Da Lang? Where Da Lang?]
“You killed him, didn’t you?” The girl asked.
Yang Kai suddenly realized who she was talking about and quickly raised his hand to summon a headless corpse. It was the mantis head that he had killed two years ago at Sword Pavilion’s Star City. Only, this guy’s head was blown apart by the Azure Dragon Spear, leaving his body behind.
Since this Monster’s strength was not weak, and both his scythe arms were rigid and sharp, they were great materials for refining artifacts. For that reason, Yang Kai kept the body this whole time.
“Da Lang followed me for many years, and I was the one who taught him how to gain sentience. Though he has died, I still wish to retrieve his body. You have no complaints about that, do you?” The girl asked Yang Kai.
“This one would not dare!” Yang Kai dropped his gaze. He dared not say a single ‘no’ to her at this moment.
The girl nodded. Raising her hand, she put away the mantis head’s body. Turning around, she sat down on the seat that used to belong to Yang Kai, crossing her legs and propping her cheek up with her hand, saying lazily, “This Queen is Zhu Jiu Yin. You have already seen what my true form is.”
“Greetings, Senior Zhu!” Yang Kai quickly bowed while shooting a look at Lu Xue and the others.
In his mind, he wondered. Was this woman surnamed Zhu because she was the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider?
The girl giggled and stared at Yang Kai, “This Queen has come out of the mountain this time just to see you.”
With those words, Yue He immediately turned her head to look warily at Yang Kai.
Yang Kai was curious, “Does Senior know me?”
“Not before, but I do now,” Zhu Jiu Yin smirked.
Yang Kai frowned, “What did Senior seek me out for? If it is to avenge Da Lang, then Senior should have taken revenge long ago.”
“Naturally, it is not for Da Lang; otherwise, would you still be alive? This Queen came in order to seek your help. If you do this Queen this favour, then I will forget about you killing Da Lang. Otherwise, I will have to settle this score with you properly.”
Yang Kai was speechless, “What kind of help does Senior need from me?” If even she herself could not do it, would he be able to?
“You will naturally know when it is time. It is useless even if you know now. For the moment, all you have to do is improve your strength as fast and as much as possible. I will live here before you help me with this favour, so don’t even think about running away.” Zhu Jiu Yin turned to look at Yue He and Lu Xue, “The two of you, follow me. This Queen needs maidservants to call upon.”
Yue He was furious!
She was in the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, but she was actually being taken as a maidservant! However, when she thought of Zhu Jiu Yin’s identity and strength, she was indeed qualified to treat her as a maid. If such an existence were to reach the outside world, she would definitely be on par with a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master.
Zhu Jiu Yen then really began living in the mansion that day, and she chose the best room for herself, which should’ve been Yang Kai’s.
She had nothing to do during her days here, so she would take Yue He and Lu Xue along with her as she browsed the Star City, buying many miscellaneous trinkets, which made the two speechless. She was the Divine Spirit Heavenly Moon Demon Spider, but even though she was so strong, she still could not help but be curious about this lively world.
Yang Kai was deeply confused. This woman only told him that she needed his help, but she did not say what sort of help she needed, only that he would understand when the time came.
But since it was a request from the Divine Spirit, it must be very important. Yang Kai could only further intensify his cultivation.
Unfortunately, even the cleverest woman could not cook a meal without rice. For the Yin, Yang and Five Elements in his Dao Seal, he was still stuck on the Metal Element. With no suitable Metal Element material to refine, he had no way of furthering the cultivation of his Dao Seal. He did have a Water Element material in his possession, but without first refining his Metal Element, it was simply impossible for him to refine the Water Element.
He could only strengthen his body physically each day by consuming Dragon Blood Pills and refining his Bloodline Power. Then, gain further insight into his Wood and Earth Powers.
A few days later, Yang Kai suddenly took out a communication bead and immersed his consciousness into it. Overjoyed, he asked, “Brother Xu, are you alright?”
The communication bead was his link to Xu Zhen. He had lost contact with Xu Zhen last time, which worried Yang Kai. He had no idea whether he was dead or alive, but he did not expect Xu Zhen to take the initiative to contact him today.
“Not dead yet, but not in a good situation either!” Xu Zhen responded.
“What happened? First of all, why did you go silent all of a sudden? Where’s everyone else?”
“The rest are fine for now, but obviously, it may not be so in the future. Brother Yang, you should also make plans early. You have been showing off your strength too much, so you will eventually catch their attention.”
“What do you mean by that?” Yang Kai was confused, “and catch the attention of who?”
Xu Zhen said, “Has Brother Yang heard of a Bearer before?”
“No, I haven’t.”
Xu Zhen went on, “I saw some records in my ancestors’ ancient books and didn’t take them seriously, but now, I know they are real. Kun Sha is not the only Divine Spirit in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary.”
Yang Kai laughed dryly, “That I know.”
Xu Zhen was surprised, “How do you know that? Did you encounter one?”
Yang Kai said with a headache, “Not only have I met one, but I have one living in my mansion!”
Xu Zhen did not respond for a long time. Yang Kai thought that something had happened to him, so he quickly transmitted a message. Only then did Xu Zhen respond, “As I thought, you’ve caught their eye, Brother Yang. In that case, I can just explain it to you. Did the Divine Spirit on your side ask you for a favour?”
Yang Kai was surprised, “How does Brother Xu know about that?”
Xu Zhen didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, “Because I am in the same position. We really are Brothers sharing the same fate.”
You, too?” Yang Kai was shocked, “Were you also captured by a Divine Spirit?”
“The Divine Spirit who captured me is Zhu Yan, and is very powerful. What Divine Spirit were you captured by?”
Yang Kai muttered, “The Heavenly Moon Demon Spider…”
After a brief exchange, Yang Kai learned that Xu Zhen had been transported to an unknown place after being separated from him, and on his way back, encountered Zhu Yan and was captured.
Yang Kai wondered, “What is it that these Divine Spirits want? The Heavenly Moon Demon Spider only said that she needed my help, but she was unwilling to reveal more when I asked. What is this Bearer thing you mentioned before?”
“Haiz!” Xu Zhen breathed a heavy sigh, “That is the reason I sent you a message. The Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary has existed for countless aeons, and the number of Divine Spirits who live here are plenty; however, these Divine Spirits are born and raised in this world, and are also bound by this place. No matter how strong they are here in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, it will still be difficult for them to display their full strengths!”
Yang Kai nodded at his words. The World Principles in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary were indeed strange. He thought that it was the Grand Ancient Ruins Rolling Fog that suppressed and sealed the Small Universes inside the bodies of the Open Heaven Realm Masters, limiting them from displaying their full strength, but now, it seemed like that may not be the case. Even the Divine Spirits were being suppressed, not to mention trivial Low-Rank and Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm cultivators.
Though Zhu Jiu Yin and Kun Sha fought a fierce battle, they were far from presenting the true strength a Divine Spirit should have.
In terms of rankings among Divine Spirits, both the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider and the Leviathan Shark were ranked on par with Mie Meng, but how terrifying was Mie Meng’s power? The power that Zhu Jiu Yin and Kun Sha displayed before was not even one percent that, which made one feel as if they were not worthy of being called true Divine Spirits.
This must be due to the suppression of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary’s World Principles, rather than the Grand Ancient Ruins Rolling Fog.
Xu Zhen’s Divine Sense rippled out from the communication bead, delivering his message, “These Divine Spirits are living in a huge cage. If you were them, Brother Yang, what would you do?”
Yang Kai was secretly surprised, but after some thought, he responded, “Naturally, I’d try to escape!”
Any Great Expert would not be happy being in such a situation and would try to change it. The easiest way to do that would be to leave the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary.
“Exactly. That is what the Divine Spirits are thinking, too. They also hope to escape from this cage and free themselves of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary’s restrictions, restoring themselves to their full glory! But they are beings of this world, so how could it be so easy to free themselves from it?”
“Is this related to that Bearer thing you mentioned before?” Yang Kai asked.
“Exactly!” Xu Zhen responded, “The Divine Spirits have no way of leaving the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary by themselves, so they have to find someone to bring them out, and these people are the Bearers that they are seeking!”
“Someone to bring them out!?” Yang Kai’s heart jumped, “These Divine Spirits can be brought out of here?”
If that were truly the case, then would his Six Fated Paths Bag not be a great treasure? When they are about to leave, he could just stuff Zhu Jiu Yin into the bag and take her outside.
“Yes, but each Bearer can only bring one Divine Spirit out! And it also requires a special opportunity to succeed.” Xu Zhen seemed to be able to guess what Yang Kai was thinking, “I know that Brother Yang has a treasure that is able to hold living beings, but that is of no use. Even if you put a Divine Spirit in that bag, it will still be intercepted by the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary without the opportunity when you leave. The reason why the Divine Spirits are seeking out these Bearers is so that they can grab hold of the opportunity to free themselves from this place.”
“So, what is this opportunity?” Yang Kai asked eagerly.
“I’m not sure. I only saw the records written in the ancient books by my ancestors. Back then, an Ancestor of Divine Cauldron Cave Heaven also fell into the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, competed against others of that period, and left behind some information about this place.”
“And he succeeded?”
“He failed.” Xu Zhen sighed, “The glory of that period belonged to a Senior from Xuan Yuan Cave Heaven. He brought a Divine Spirit out from the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, and in return that Divine Spirit served as his Protector for a thousand years before leaving Xuan Yuan Cave Heaven.”
“A Protector!” Yang Kai was astonished.
“A bodyguard, a thug… something of that sort.” Xu Zhen grinned meaningfully, “If we have to put our lives on the line for the sake of those Divine Spirits, then we have to ask for some compensation, right? And that Senior from Xuan Yuan Cave Heaven did just that. He negotiated with that Divine Spirit and had him act as his Protector for a thousand years, and that Divine Spirit had no choice but to accept. Brother Yang, I am also planning to negotiate with this Zhu Yan from my side. Tsk tsk, how impressive would it be if I manage to bring a Divine Spirit out of here?”
Yang Kai was speechless. Can such conditions even be proposed? If he ended up provoking a Divine Spirit, then he truly would not know how to write the word ‘death’.
“Many thanks to Brother Xu for this information. It will be of great use to me,” Yang Kai transmitted a word of thanks to him. He had been wondering what sort of help that Zhu Jiu Yin needed from him, and why she wanted him to improve his strength, but he finally understood why after hearing this story from Xu Zhen.
Obviously, Kun Sha had chased him all the way here not only because of the Ice Soul Moon Pearl that he stole from him, but also to use him as a Bearer; otherwise, he would not have left this place without asking about the Ice Soul Moon Pearl’s whereabouts.
“It’s no big deal. You would have found out about it eventually even if I did not tell you. But if both you and I become Bearers, then there might be a time in the future when we are forced to fight. For the interests of my Divine Cauldron Heaven, I will not go easy on Brother Yang when the time comes.”
“Rightfully so!”
“And, there is still Ning Dao Ran and the others. I estimate that they will not be able to escape the same fate. The Divine Spirits have been watching quietly all these years, most likely to observe those of us who fell into this world so that they can choose a suitable Bearer. Now, as Zhu Yan and the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider have both already made their moves, the other Divine Spirits must not be able to sit still either. I’m guessing Ning Dao Ran and the others have all also been captured by the Divine Spirits, and it is only a matter of time before we will be forced to fight amongst ourselves… But let us not talk about that right now. Zhu Yan is back. I will talk to you again when I have the time!”
Speaking up to this point, Xu Zhen cut off communication with him.
Yang Kai silently put away his communication bead and digested the information told to him by Xu Zhen. Bearers, the opportunity to break free from the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary’s shackles, the recruitment of a Protector. All of this was information that he had never heard of.
And, there was still Lin Feng.
In this case, Lin Feng should not be in any danger. He was, at the very least, a disciple of a Cave-Heaven with an extraordinary heritage. He was definitely one of the Bearer candidates, so Kun Sha should not have killed him. There was a very good chance that he might choose him as his Bearer.
With that, some doubts could finally be cleared from his mind.
The reason why Zhu Jiu Yin did not kill him or trouble him in any way, even asking him to cultivate properly was very clearly because she wanted him to help her grab hold of her opportunity to leave this place.
[The Spirit Seizing War, was it?] Yang Kai recalled what Kun Sha said as he left. Even though he had no idea what the Spirit Seizing War was, it was obviously related to the opportunity.
After a moment of silence, Yang Kai headed for the main hall.
Inside the main hall, Zhu Jiu Yin was sitting on a chair while Lu Xue and Yue He were busying themselves. The floor was littered with all the things they bought from the Star City, mostly women’s accessories.
Yue He stood in front of Zhu Jiu Yin, holding a mirror, while Lu Xue was putting the accessories on Zhu Jiu Yin. Looking left and right, she kept the ones she liked and tossed the ones she didn’t aside.
When Yang Kai came in, he felt a bit speechless to see Zhu Jiu Yin admiring herself in the mirror.
Yue He turned to look at him, with an aggrieved look on her face.
Yang Kai pretended not to have seen it and stepped forward, cupping his fists, “Senior.”
While fiddling with the ornaments in her hair, Zhu Jiu Yin said without even looking up, “What are you doing here rather than cultivating?” Glancing sideways, she asked Yue He, “How does this one look?”
Yue He answered, “Beautiful.”
This was not mere flattery, either. She indeed looked beautiful; after all, she was the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider. With her beautiful face, she would look good in anything.
“A bit too gaudy,” Zhu Jiu Yin shook her head and took off the hairpin, tossing it aside.
Yang Kai took this opportunity to interject, “Senior wants me to cultivate, and I also want to cultivate. Unfortunately, I am unable to continue.”
“Why?” Zhu Jiu Yin looked up at him.
“Without appropriate materials, I am unable to condense my Yin, Yang, and the Five Elements Powers.” Yang Kai lowered his gaze.
“Nonsense!” Zhu Jiu Yin snarled, “You think I don’t know that you stole Kun Sha’s Moon Essence from him? That thing comes from the Primordial Land and is the very core essence of a Moon. It is enough for you to refine for a long time.”
“Primordial Land? Moon Essence?” Yang Kai’s body shook, “Senior is talking about the Ice Soul Moon Pearl?”
“What Ice Soul Moon Pearl!” Zhu Jiu Yin said with disdain. She waved her hand and motioned for Yue He to step aside before turning to look at Yang Kai, “This Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary used to have both a Moon and Sun, but as too much time has passed, the Sun has gone out and the Moon crumbled. A piece of Moon Essence fell into the Primordial Land long ago, where it was later brought out and fell into Kun Sha’s hands.”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded.
Even though he knew that the Ice Soul Moon Pearl was an Innate Supreme Treasure, he never thought that it would actually be a piece of Moon Essence. It was no wonder why it glowed like the moon and felt bone-chilling to the touch.
As for what the Primordial Land was, Yang Kai had no idea. But obviously, it must be a secret place in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary.
After calming his heart down and suppressing his excitement, Yang Kai went on, “Even so, it will not work. Senior should know that I have now only gathered my Wood, Fire and Earth Element Powers. The next Element I must refine is Metal before I can gather Water. The Moon Essence will work as my Water Element material, but I still lack a suitable Metal Element treasure. Without that, this boy cannot do anything even with a Water Element treasure.”
“What are you trying to say?” Zhu Jiu Yin looked at him with a smirk.
“If Senior can offer a Metal Element Treasure to me, then nothing would be better. Senior is a long-time resident of the Grand Ancient Ruins, and with an abundance of treasures in these lands, Senior should have many Metal Element treasures in her possession, right?”
“So, you’ve come to seek benefits, I see.” Zhu Jiu Yin smiled and propped up her chin with her hand, looking lazily at Yang Kai, “Very well. Let us hear what sort of treasure you seek. If I have it, then I will give it to you.”
“No matter what treasure it is, as long as it is of the Seventh Order or higher, then this Junior’s requirements aren’t too high.” Yang Kai rubbed his palms together and smiled flatteringly.
Zhu Jiu Yin’s face turned dark in an instant, “Your requirements aren’t too high, anything above the Seventh Order will do?”
Seeing this, Yang Kai’s heart thumped. He wondered to himself, [was my request too excessive?] But he steeled himself and nodded.
Zhu Jiu Yin was furious, “You say your requirements are not high, but do you know what it means to ask for something in the Seventh Order or above?”
“What does it mean?” Yang Kai asked meekly.
Zhu Jiu Yin snorted, “It means an existence at a similar level to this Queen must be killed, and their Monster Core taken. If you really wish to do so, then this Queen can point you in a direction. Head west a million kilometres from here. There’s an annoying guy there called Jin Wu. Kill him and take his Monster Core. It will be a treasure of at least the Eighth Order.”
Cold sweat slid down Yang Kai’s forehead, “Senior must be joking.”
That Jin Wu must also be a Divine Spirit. If Yang Kai really had the ability to kill him, would he need to act meek and respectful in front of Zhu Jiu Yin? He would have put her in her place long ago.
“Junior does not necessarily need a Divine Spirit’s Monster Core for his Metal Element treasure. Are there no other suitable treasures here in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary?”
“There used to be some.” Zhu Jiu Yin had a reminiscent look on her face, “But they are all gone.”
“How come?” Yang Kai was confused.
“You are not the only guests we have had here in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. If there was anything good, then would those bastards not have taken them away already? Do you think they would leave it for you? If you are looking for treasures in the Seventh Order and above, then the only way you can get them is by killing Divine Spirits and taking their Monster Cores.”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded, but on second thought, it did make sense. Even though the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary was a huge natural treasure trove, they were not the only visitors who had come here through the countless years. Why should those Senior Experts leave anything for their Juniors when they came here? If there was anything good, they would have taken them away a long time ago.
The reason he was able to get his hands on the Earth Attribute Dragon Bead was because of his bloodline’s perception, and naturally, the Moon Essence was the Sea Clan’s Sacred Treasure, which was looked after by Kun Sha. Getting his hands on a Metal Element treasure was probably going to be difficult.
“Why do you seek treasures in the Seventh Order or above?” Zhu Jiu Yin looked at Yang Kai in confusion, “I know you Humans cultivate by condensing a Dao Seal in your bodies, and then condensing Yin, Yang, and Five Elements to reach the Open Heaven Realm. If you seek Seventh-Order materials, does that mean you are aiming to reach the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm with your initial breakthrough?”
“Exactly.” Yang Kai nodded solemnly, “Junior has high aspirations and is seeking to reach the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm, exactly as Senior says.”
Zhu Jiu Yin blinked her eyes for a moment and laughed, “You’re the most ambitious Human I’ve met.”
Yang Kai keenly grasped onto a clue, “Has Senior had a Bearer in the past?”
Zhu Jiu Yin was surprised, “You know about the Bearers?”
“It’s not a secret, is it?” Yang Kai smiled and pretended to be well-learned.
Zhu Jiu Yin observed him, “Your heritage is not bad, so you must come from an extraordinary background. It is not surprising that you know this.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Grabbing onto the opportunity to get out of this cage is why Junior seeks benefits from Senior. Only when Junior is strong will he be able to compete with the others and take the top spot!”
“That is reasonable.” Zhu Jiu Yin nodded, “But if you want a Metal Element treasure in the Seventh Order or above, then there is nothing I can do to help. However, I do have plenty of Sixth-Order materials.”
Yang Kai was speechless. He also had Sixth-Order treasures. Yuan Magnetic Divine Stones alone, he had several dozen pieces of them, and his Yuan Magnetic Divine Bottle Gourd was also holding much Sixth-Order Yuan Magnetic Divine Light. If he were willing to use Sixth-Order materials, then why would he have to ask Zhu Jiu Yin for help?
“I’ll tell you what,” Zhu Jiu Yin said after pondering for a while, “First, condense your Water Element Power. Meanwhile, I will have someone poke around for a Metal Element treasure for you. There might be something left behind, and if there is, I will find it for you.”
Yang Kai did not understand, “How will I condense my Water Element without first condensing my Metal Element?”
Zhu Jiu Yin laughed, “Naturally, ordinary people can only condense the Five Elements in order; however, this Queen has a wonderful technique that can allow you to ignore this order and condense them in any order you wish.”
Yang Kai was stunned, “Such a technique exists in this world?”
Yue He and Lu Xue were both also surprised. They were Fourth and Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, and could already be considered knowledgeable, but they had never heard of the existence of such a Secret Art before.
If such a technique truly existed, then would it not be a breakthrough in the cultivation techniques formed through countless ages in the Outer Universe? If such a thing were to appear in the world, then it would certainly set off a reign of terror.
Zhu Jiu Yin spoke faintly, “It did not used to exist, but this Queen had a Bearer with amazing ingenuity who created this technique. He was in the same situation as you back then, lacking materials for his next Element, even though he had resources for the one after that. Helpless, he had no choice but to skip over the order. But I must tell you that though this is a profound technique, and even somewhat fantastical, it comes with some risks. If your heritage is not deep enough, the Five Elements Powers could riot and destroy your Dao Seal. When that time comes, your cultivation will be lost at best, and at worst you will die. Do you still want to learn?”
“Junior is willing!” Yang Kai nodded. No matter the risk, learning the technique first was never a wrong idea. If it were truly impossible, he could just choose not to cultivate it. He was still young anyway and had a long future ahead of him. There was no need for him to rush things.
Zhu Jiu Yin nodded and gently lifted a finger, pressing it onto Yang Kai’s forehead.
Yang Kai’s body shuddered. Then, he felt immense information pouring into his mind, causing him to freeze in place for a while.
After a long time, his body suddenly shook, and he came back to his senses. He had a look of admiration on his face as he muttered, “The one who created this technique is truly a genius.”
This technique was called the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture. If one were to condense their Yin, Yang, and Five Elements through this method, they would simply not have to care about the order at all, meaning they could cultivate however they wished.
However, the impact of the Powers on one’s Dao Seal when condensed through this method was far greater compared to normal. If one’s Dao Seal was not firm enough, then cultivating this way simply would not work. That was the risk that Zhu Jiu Yin told him about.
But there were still some advantages to condensing one’s Yin, Yang, and Five Elements in this manner and that was that once a cultivator broke through to the Open Heaven Realm, their strength would be slightly higher than normal.
That was because the Dao Seal had withstood much stronger impacts, leading to a more solid foundation, which others naturally could not compete against.
Yang Kai was very impressed. Zhu Jiu Yin had told him that it was one of her Bearers that developed this technique, so it can be seen how amazing that Bearer was.
But what confused Yang Kai was why that Bearer, despite his amazing achievements, was unable to bring Zhu Jiu Yin out of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary.
Seemingly noticing Yang Kai’s question, Zhu Jiu Yin answered, “That man died in the Spirit Seizing War. If not, with his aptitude, how could this Queen still be trapped here?”
Yang Kai gulped, “Did he die because of this technique?”
“No. Actually, this technique was created by the two of us and perfected to the greatest degree possible. He died because he became the tree that rose too far above the forest. He was surrounded by the other Bearers and killed.”
Yang Kai nodded. With this, he could rest easy. Since someone was able to successfully cultivate this Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture, then he would certainly be able to do it as well.
There was no reason for him not to follow the path developed by the Seniors before him.
He was eager to learn the mysteries of this profound technique, so not bothering to continue chatting with Zhu Jiu Yin any further, Yang Kai excused himself and retreated to his room to cultivate.
Day after day, month after month passed.
The Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture was so profound that Yang Kai had to study it for half a year before gaining any insight. Even so, he did not dare try it rashly.
The Moon Essence’s Order was very high; after all, it was an Innate Supreme Treasure. If he did not have complete confidence in success, then forcibly condensing it would only damage his Dao Seal.
Even if Yang Kai wanted to try it, then there were two other key points.
One is that the Five Elements Powers couldn’t be harmonized as usual. Normally, he should first condense his Metal Element before condensing the Water Element, but now, without a suitable Metal Element treasure, the Five Elements were bound to be somewhat disordered, so he had to harmonise them with the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture, which would solve the problem. This Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture was created just for moments like these.
The greatest problem came if one’s Dao Seal was not firm enough. Yang Kai was uniquely blessed to have been able to condense the essence of the Immortal Tree to form his Wood Element Power, which laid a solid foundation for himself and also helped to suppress the Fire Element Power he condensed. There was no need to mention the Earth Element Power from the Earth Dragon Bead as he too possessed a Divine Dragon Source, so there was no danger in him condensing it. But if he now wanted to condense his Water Element Power out of order, his Dao Seal was still not rigid enough to withstand it.
Yang Kai had no choice but to leave his room and seek Zhu Jiu Yin’s advice.
He believed that the previous Bearer should have encountered a similar experience. Since her previous Bearer accomplished his training, he must have been able to solve this problem.
After hearing what Yang Kai had to say, Zhu Jiu Yin casually tossed a jade bottle to him.
Yang Kai accepted it and opened the bottle while asking in confusion, “What is this?”
Zhu Jiu Yin answered lazily, “I don’t know what it is, either, but that brat called it Divine Dao Water.” The brat that Zhu Jiu Yin spoke of must be the Bearer who created the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture.
“Divine Dao Water!?” Yue He and Lu Xue at the side exclaimed in unison, their beautiful faces turning pale.
Zhu Jiu Yin turned her head and shot them a glance. Even Yang Kai had turned to look at them, “Is this item well-known?”
Her understanding of the Outer Universe was lacking, so she naturally had no idea what the value of this Divine Dao Water was.
Yue He quickly explained, “It’s a very good item. A real treasure!”
Lu Xue also nodded vigorously and looked at the jade bottle in Yang Kai’s hand with great enthusiasm.
Yang Kai raised his brow as he listened, “Since this was a reward from Senior, then it must be something good, but what is its use?”
Yue He explained, “To strengthen one’s Dao Seal! You must know that a cultivator’s aptitude has limits, and the fundamental manifestation of that is their Dao Seal. Condensing Third-Order Elements is the limit for some people, but others can condense Sixth-Order Elements. This is the difference between the limits of each cultivator’s Dao Seal. Each Dao Seal is condensed in a person’s own body, so once it is formed, it cannot be easily changed. So, the forming of one’s Dao Seal basically predetermines a person’s future achievements. But with Divine Dao Water, it’s possible to go a step further.”
“By strengthening one’s Dao Seal with this Divine Water, one can condense Yin, Yang and Five Elements of Higher-Orders, surpassing one’s original limits?” Yang Kai seemed to be able to understand, and was overjoyed to hear this.
“En,” Yue He nodded. She was able to achieve the Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm back then, meaning that her Dao Seal’s limit was being able to withstand the impact of Fifth-Order Elements, but if she had the help of the Divine Dao Water at that time, then reaching the Sixth-Order would be no problem, provided she was able to collect enough Sixth-Order materials.
Only, Divine Dao Water was extremely rare. After countless years, legends of people obtaining Divine Dao Water had only appeared a handful of times in the 3,000 Worlds.
Sure enough, this Divine Dao Water was a treasure. Yang Kai put it away happily and asked Zhu Jiu Yin how to refine it before returning to his room and continuing his retreat.
Inside the room, Yang Kai sat cross-legged and turned on the Isolation Array to avoid any disturbances. Only then did he carefully take out the jade bottle containing the Divine Dao Water and opened the cap.
Not much Divine Dao Water was left in the jade bottle, less than half in fact. There were only about several dozen drops inside. Zhu Jiu Yin’s previous Bearer must have used a lot of it.
But even a single drop of Divine Dao Water was a precious resource, so several dozen was definitely enough to fulfil Yang Kai’s needs.
Calming his breathing and focusing his mind, Yang Kai’s Divine Sense surged and entered the jade bottle, retrieving a drop of Divine Dao Water.
The Divine Water placed inside the jade bottle did not look like anything special, but it gave off a wonderful fragrance as soon as it emerged into the world. As he sniffed it, Yang Kai’s eyes could not help but go lax as he muttered, “It smells so good. It must be delicious, too…”
Saying so, he took up a drop of Divine Dao Water with his Divine Sense and sent it to his mouth.
But the next moment, Yang Kai was shaken. He quickly came back to his senses and shut his mouth, pressing the drop he almost placed in his mouth between his brow instead.
This Divine Water was not supposed to be consumed via the mouth, but to be refined using one’s Dao Seal, just like how one would condense their Yin, Yang and Five Elements. If he consumed it rashly, then it would not have any effect.
Zhu Jiu Yin told him earlier that he would encounter some disturbances while he was refining the Divine Dao Water, but he did not take it to heart. It wasn’t until now that he realized how careless he was.
Fortunately, he reacted in time; otherwise, he might have wasted a drop.
Strangely enough, the Divine Dao Water was clearly a tangible thing, but when it touched the middle of his forehead, it suddenly disappeared without a trace. In the next instant, Yang Kai felt a slight chill in his Dao Seal, as if something had entered it.
Yang Kai quickly immersed his consciousness inside to investigate.
What he saw was a watery glow surrounding his Dao Seal. The Divine Dao Water was constantly seeping into his Dao Seal as a strange power spread out and was being absorbed. As time passed, Yang Kai did in fact feel his Dao Seal becoming firmer.
The Dao Seal was the manifestation of each cultivator’s Grand Dao. As a cultivator condensed their Dao Seal, all their cultivation was consolidated into it, and a cultivator’s foundation was directly related to the Dao Seal that one condenses. With a good foundation, one’s Dao Seal would be stronger, while the opposite was also true.
Even though no one has ever categorized Dao Seals into Orders, in fact, a cultivator’s Dao Seal can also be divided into different rankings.
Yang Kai’s Dao was the Grand Dao of Space, which he had deep attainments in. If not, he would not have been able to escape the pursuit of all the Low-Rank Open Heaven and Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters after snatching away the Golden Crow carcass.
The Dao of Space was one of the 3,000 Grand Daos, and was a very profound one at that. Naturally, the Dao Seal that Yang Kai condensed using the Dao of Space was not something that regular cultivators could compare with. His foundation allowed him to condense Elements of the Seventh Order and above.
His other foundation was the Wood Element Power that he condensed from the essence of the Immortal Tree, which was a surprise opportunity for him.
But despite this, his Dao Seal still had huge room for improvement. Fortunately, he had not yet reached the Open Heaven Realm. If he had already entered the Open Heaven Realm, then his foundation would be completely set. Then, there would be nothing that the Divine Dao Water could do.
At first, when the mysterious Divine Dao Water seeped into his Dao Seal, Yang Kai felt a slight chill, but following that, a warm and comforting feeling spread out around his Dao Seal. Not daring to dally, Yang Kai concentrated on refining it.
But in fact, refining the Divine Dao Water was a truly difficult process. A single drop of Divine Water took Yang Kai an entire month to completely refine.
After sensing the difference in his Dao Seal from before the process, Yang Kai frowned. It did not feel like the Divine Dao Water actually did much, only providing a 10% improvement at most.
However, on second thought, his Dao Seal was beyond ordinary to begin with. With such a high starting point, it was only natural that the Divine Dao Water would not be able to improve his Dao Seal by much. If it were anyone else, then it might have been a different story.
If a single drop of Divine Water could improve his Dao Seal’s strength by 10%, then would ten drops not be 100%?
Without pause, Yang Kai released his Divine Sense and took out another drop of Divine Water before continuing to refine it. There were at least several dozen drops inside the jade bottle, and this was a rare opportunity, so Yang Kai naturally wanted to raise his Dao Seal’s strength to the maximum extent possible.
Drop after drop of Divine Water was refined, and Yang Kai’s Dao Seal became firmer and firmer; however, as time passed, the benefits of refining the Divine Water gradually diminished.
Another year passed, and when Yang Kai opened his eyes again, he let out a long breath.
He had consumed more than a dozen drops of Divine Dao Water in this one year and improved his Dao Seal to the greatest extent he could. Further refinement of the Divine Water would be useless, and nothing more than a waste.
After putting away the jade bottle, Yang Kai inspected his own body, feeling very satisfied.
Now, even if a Ninth-Order material was placed in front of him, he was confident that he would be able to refine it easily and not have to worry about his Dao Seal not being able to withstand it.
This retreat brought him many benefits. His Dao Seal was now in a much more solid state, allowing him to condense Higher-Order Elements with greater speed and ease. Additionally, he did not have to worry too much even if he were to encounter any type of Divine Ability that targeted his Dao Seal in the future.
He left the room again to go see Zhu Jiu Yin.
There, he was surprised to find Zhu Jiu Yin talking to his two exotic beasts, the Scarlet Flood Dragon and the Earth Dragon, in the courtyard. Yang Kai had no idea what language she was speaking, but it sounded like a pearl dropping onto a jade plate, containing profound Principles and resonating with the Heavenly Dao. The Scarlet Flood Dragon and the Earth Dragon did not notice his arrival in the slightest as they were both listening attentively to her.
It was only after a while that Zhu Jiu Yin smiled, “Alright, that’s all for today. You should go back and cultivate.”
The Scarlet Flood Dragon and the Earth Dragon both nodded to express their gratitude; then, when they turned around and saw Yang Kai, the Scarlet Flood Dragon immediately crawled its way over, roaming by Yang Kai’s legs. The Earth Dragon was much more direct. It opened its mouth and wriggled its body, flinging its saliva everywhere, which landed on the floor in a patter.
Yang Kai was speechless. He tossed out two Dragon Blood Pills to them to get rid of them.
With a rumble, the two big fellows went back down the tunnel they came in from and left after receiving the Dragon Blood Pills.
Yang Kai asked curiously, “How come Senior is in such a good mood as to guide them today?”
He listened for a while earlier, and though he had no idea what Zhu Jiu Yin was actually saying to the Scarlet Flood Dragon and the Earth Dragon, he had a vague feeling that she was helping them enhance their sentience. The reason why the Earth Dragon and the Scarlet Flood Dragon were unable to assume human form was not that they were not strong enough, but because they had not become sentient yet. With Zhu Jiu Yin to guide them, the time it would take them to assume human form would be greatly decreased.
Zhu Jiu Yin smiled, “I had nothing to do, so I just looked for something to occupy myself. But I was also wondering why their bloodlines were so pure. It turns out it was because of you.”
She clearly saw the Dragon Blood Pills earlier. Whether it be the Scarlet Flood Dragon or the Earth Dragon, both of them had a trace of the Dragon Clan bloodline in them; only, it was extremely faint at first. After repeated consumption of Dragon Blood Pills over the past few years though, their Dragon Clan bloodline has also been greatly strengthened, even exceeding the limits of their respective races.
“What do you need me for?” Zhu Jiu Yin asked.
Yang Kai said, “I wished to ask about the Metal Element treasure.”
“I haven’t found anything,” Zhu Jiu Yin shook her head. Her million-strong army had all been mobilized and were scraping through every square metre of the Grand Ancient Ruins, but they still could not find any news of any Metal Element treasures above the Seventh Order. Not only Metal Element, but they also could not find Seventh-Order materials of any of the other Elements either.
As Zhu Jiu Yin said before, the Grand Ancient Ruins had many visitors in the past. Batch after batch of cultivators were swallowed in, which naturally included some brilliant ones. So, many of the precious treasures in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary had already been picked clean. Even if those Divine Spirits had collected some before, they had also given them to their respective Bearers over the years to help increase their strength to improve their chances of seizing the opportunity for them to leave this place.
Yang Kai was slightly disappointed. If even Zhu Jiu Yin was unable to find treasures of the Metal Element at or above the Seventh Order, then he would have little hope of doing so himself.
“Only two places might have what you need now,” Zhu Jiu Yin said softly.
“Where?”
“One is in Golden Eagle Palace, which is naturally the territory of Jin Wu.”
Yang Kai’s face darkened, “Then forget it.” Zhu Jiu Yin had also mentioned Jin Wu a year ago. If he could kill him and take away his Monster Core, then Yang Kai’s requirements would be met, but Jin Wu was a genuine Divine Spirit after all, and Zhu Jiu Yin herself might not be able to defeat him.
“The other place is the Primordial Land. Many treasures are still left in that place.”
“Where is the Primordial Land?” Yang Kai’s eyes lit up. The Primordial Land was where the Moon Essence came from supposedly. Zhu Jiu Yin also told him that the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary used to have a Sun and a Moon, but over time, the Sun burned out, and the Moon broke apart. One piece of its Moon Essence fell into the Primordial Land, which someone had then taken out, eventually landing in Kun Sha’s hands.
“The Primordial Land is where the Spirit Seizing War takes place. It has not opened yet.” Zhu Jiu Yin slowly shook her head.
[If it isn’t open, why bring it up?] Yang Kai was disgruntled, but since the Primordial Land was where the Spirit Seizing War would take place, did that not mean that he would only be able to go in and search for a suitable Metal Element material after it began?
Zhu Jiu Yin had asked him to improve his strength for the Spirit Seizing War, so he simply did not have enough time.
“Can’t you just settle for a Sixth-Order Metal Element treasure?” Zhu Jiu Yin asked with a frown.
Yang Kai replied sternly, “This matter is related to my Grand Dao. It is a lifelong pursuit. How can I settle for less?”
Zhu Jiu Yin simply smiled, thinking to herself that it would not be up to him to make the choices when the time came and changed the subject, “So, how is the cultivation of that technique going?”
“Almost there,” Yang Kai nodded lightly. The Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture was truly esoteric. Fortunately, he had been studying it for a long time and gained some insights into it. Now that his Dao Seal has been reinforced to its limits, there should be no danger for him to condense his Water Element Power.
“Then go ahead and condense the Water Element Power first. I will stand guard for you.”
Yang Kai was about to refuse her, but Zhu Jiu Yin said, “Your life or death affects this Queen’s future, so you have no say in this matter. I might as well tell you that those old guys have all found their own Bearers and are putting their greatest effort into nurturing them. The Spirit Seizing War is sure to be a life or death struggle.”
“In that case… Very well.” An arm cannot be thicker than a thigh, so Yang Kai could only nod in agreement.
After agreeing to enter retreat to condense the Water Element Power three days later, Yang Kai came to Yue He to ask if anything happened while he was in seclusion, but apparently, nothing big occurred. With a Divine Spirit like the Heavenly Moon Demon Spider watching over this Star City, none of them had to worry about others daring to attack.
Three days later, inside a cultivation room, Yang Kai and Zhu Jiu Yin sat opposite each other.
“The subtleties of the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture have already been taught to you. You must remember that this technique is extremely taxing on the mind, so do not take this lightly,” Zhu Jiu Yin reminded him.
Yang Kai nodded, “Rest assured.”
Grasping at the void, a sceptre appeared in his palm. On top of the sceptre was an orb that shone brightly, the Moon Essence.
Dense Water Element aura poured out all at once. If Yang Kai had not seen the might of this thing in person, then he would not have realized the great threat that existed in this gentle Water Element Power.
The sceptre was also made of extremely high-grade materials; otherwise, it would be impossible to set the Moon Essence on it.
But Yang Kai only needed the Water Element Power inside of the Moon Essence. The sceptre was of no use to him.
After taking out the Moon Essence from the sceptre, Yang Kai could not help but shiver the moment his hand made contact with the orb. A freezing cold spread from the palm of his hand and instantly eroded his mind, as if to freeze his Soul.
What’s more, a layer of frost was quickly building up on the surface of his palm at a rate visible to the naked eye, soon extending up to his elbow.
With a puff, black fire was ignited that gradually melted the frost and warmed the shocking cold.
Zhu Jiu Yin’s beautiful eyes glinted with surprise, “Golden Crow’s True Fire?”
She was a Divine Spirit, so she naturally had a keen sense of other Divine Spirit’s flames. After a moment, she nodded lightly. If this brat in front of her had the Golden Crow’s True Fire, then it would greatly lessen the cold of the refining process of the Moon Essence.
“Senior, I will begin now,” Yang Kai informed her. Then he closed his eyes and focused his mind.
Urging the power of his Dao Seal, he drew out the Ice Element Power from the Moon Essence.
In an instant, Yang Kai felt as if he had sunken into ten-thousand-year-old frozen ice. Even his thoughts became a little slow. The coldness that had been suppressed burst out once more, freezing his two hands solid while frost spread out across his body at a rate visible to the naked eye.
The Moon Essence was merely emitting coldness out of instinct before so he was able to suppress it with the Golden Crow’s True Fire without issue, but now that he was drawing out the power of the Moon Essence himself, the Golden Crow’s True Fire could no longer hold it down.
The fire burned in a hot blaze, but the icy coldness was able to suppress the Golden Crow’s True Fire.
Zhu Jiu Yin’s face changed slightly. She paid close attention to Yang Kai’s movements, waiting for the moment when things started to take a turn for the worse to immediately put a stop to it. Yang Kai was the Bearer that she chose, so she naturally could not just watch him die; otherwise, it would be difficult for her to find another Bearer as excellent as this one. Time was running out, and she had no time to nurture another candidate.
In other words, if Yang Kai died here, then she would have to wait until the next time the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary opened to find another Bearer to seize the opportunity to escape from this cage.
The coldness could be seen eroding his body, when a green glow suddenly emerged around his rapidly withering form. The glow was filled with surging vitality. Even Zhu Jiu Yin could not help but feel moved by this sight. She could not understand what sort of Wood Element it was that Yang Kai had condensed to have such a powerful force.
The Wood Element Power lingered around his body, and his withering figure slowly regained its lustre.
Then, it continued to freeze under the cold before recovering again. This repeated on and on and looked quite dangerous, but there seemed to be a delicate balance forming.
This was not to say that the might of the Moon Essence surpassed that of the combined might of both the Immortal Tree and the Golden Crow’s True Fire, but rather that both Powers had already been condensed inside of Yang Kai’s Dao Seal, and he was not strong enough to unleash their full potential. Meanwhile, the Moon Essence in his hands had fully displayed its might once activated, and so was naturally able to defeat the two with only itself.
Yang Kai and Zhu Jiu Yin could not help but let out a sigh of relief. The combined power of the Golden Crow’s True Fire and the Immortal Tree was finally able to suppress the icy coldness of the Moon Essence.
But his body’s continued freezing and thawing naturally brought about unbearable pain to Yang Kai; still, his mind’s focus was only on his Dao Seal.
The Dao Seal was filled with three kinds of Powers, but suddenly, a new Ice Element Power appeared.
This was naturally the power of the Moon Essence. The balance that existed within the Dao Seal was instantly shattered, sending the Five Elements into chaos. Whether it be the Wood Element, the Fire Element, or the Earth Element, all of them were rampaging inside Yang Kai’s Dao Seal, as if they were trying to shatter it.
Yang Kai grunted. His mind and spirit were shaken while the blood was surging in his chest. Sure enough, condensing an Element this way was dangerous. If he had not reinforced his Dao Seal with the Divine Dao Water, then this attempt would have been disastrous; after all, the Order of the Elements in his Dao Seal was extremely high, so their impact was not small when they went out of control. Without the robustness of his Dao Seal having been reinforced, Yang Kai would not have been able to hold up for long.
But now, his Dao Seal was different. After consuming over a dozen drops of Divine Dao Water, Yang Kai’s Dao Seal was almost twice as firm as before, so it could still withstand this level of impact.
Yang Kai quickly circulated the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture to harmonize the Five Elements and put order back in place.
Following the activation of the technique, the disorderly Elements began to calm, a result Yang Kai was happy to see.
Even though he had known that the technique was effective when he had been studying the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture, he had never tried it for himself and felt uneasy because of it. But now that he had tried it, the Elements were immediately brought to order, showing that this technique truly was effective. It could allow a cultivator to ignore the order of the Five Elements and gather them as they pleased.
In this way, he did not have to be in such a great rush to find a suitable Metal Element treasure. He would have a chance to find one later, so it would not be too late to condense it then.
But very soon, Yang Kai discovered the drawbacks of this method. Just as Zhu Jiu Yin said before, the technique exerted a lot of pressure on one’s mind as it needed to be circulated continuously at all times. If it was interrupted, then the Five Elements would immediately become disrupted.
The reason that Zhu Jiu Yin had to stand guard for him was to prevent such risks. With her strength, if she were to perceive that something was not right, she could forcefully intervene. Of course, Yang Kai would also suffer damage to his foundation as a result of it.
Under close observation, Zhu Jiu Yin discovered that Yang Kai was not in any great danger, and she had to click her tongue in wonder at that. She thought to herself that the might of this brat’s Spiritual Energy was truly extraordinary. Even though her previous Bearer was also not bad, he seemed a little lacking compared to this one. At the very least, her old Bearer was unable to bring the Five Elements back into order in such a short amount of time and with such ease.
Of course, she had no idea that Yang Kai’s Spiritual Energy was indeed much stronger than his peers. Yang Kai had obtained the Soul Warming Lotus at a young age, and after so many years of the Soul Warming Lotus’ constant nourishment, Yang Kai’s Soul and Spiritual Energy had grown much stronger than others in his realm.
Later, after consummating his marriage with Yu Ru Meng, Yang Kai obtained her Primordial Yin which she had been cultivating for thousands of years. Yu Ru Meng was a Charm Demon Demon Saint, and her Spiritual Energy was unmatched amongst all of the Demon Saints and Great Emperors. Obtaining her Primordial Yin allowed Yang Kai’s Spiritual Energy to soar once more, almost bringing him to the level of a Great Emperor while he was still in the Emperor Realm.
Later, when he ascended to become Void Great Emperor, the might of his Soul rose like a rising tide that lifts all boats.
So, for Yang Kai, maintaining the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture with a thread of consciousness and harmonizing the Five Elements Powers was not too difficult.
His body was unhindered, and the icy chill was suppressed by the Golden Crow’s True Fire. He also had the Wood Element Power to repair the damage done to his body. His mind was unhindered as his strong Divine Sense was enough for him to efficiently multitask. His Dao Seal was also unhindered. With the Divine Dao Water to reinforce it, it could resist the impact of the Elements and remain unshaken!
Once the first step was taken, everything else was easy.
As time passed, the Water Element Power in the Moon Essence was condensed by Yang Kai into his Dao Seal.
The Moon Essence that Yang Kai held in his palm gradually grew dim.
Zhu Jiu Yin suddenly looked down and stared blankly at the Moon Essence in Yang Kai’s hand. She hadn’t paid much attention to it earlier since her focus was on Yang Kai himself, ready to react to any accidents. Only after Yang Kai’s condition stabilized did she have the time to notice other things.
She noticed a thread of spirituality being born in the Moon Essence. Looking closely, there was indeed a stream of light flowing inside of the Moon Essence.
She was surprised.
[Is this Moon Essence gaining sentience?]
As far as she could remember, this Moon Essence was a treasure brought out by one of Kun Sha’s former Bearers from the Primordial Land. Only, the Bearer was unable to secure an opportunity for Kun Sha, so out of anger, Kun Sha killed him. Later, the Moon Essence became the Sea Clan’s Sacred Treasure.
Tens of thousands of years had already passed since then, and the spiritual beliefs of the Sea Clan continued gathering in this Moon Essence. It was indeed possible for a dead object to gain spirituality in such a manner.
If this Moon Essence had not fallen into Yang Kai’s hands, then in another few thousand years, it might have been reborn as a living being. If that happened, then it might have had the possibility of becoming an existence no less than that of a Divine Spirit!
But now that the Moon Essence was being absorbed and refined by Yang Kai, the Moon Essence Spirit would most likely not be born.
For Zhu Jiu Yin though, there was nothing to pity. The stronger Yang Kai was, the greater his chance of seizing the opportunity would be. More than just a mere thread of spirituality, even if the Moon Essence was truly alive, she would have killed it so Yang Kai could refine it.
Under her watchful eyes, the light inside of the Moon Essence gradually dimmed, clearly being absorbed and refined by Yang Kai.
Zhu Jiu Yin stood up and drifted out of the room.
The rest did not require her attention. If Yang Kai had already refined it to this extent yet still had an accident, that would mean that he was not even worth nurturing to begin with.
Half a year later, Yang Kai opened his eyes. Looking down, the Moon Essence in his hands had already crumbled into dust, flowing through the gaps in his fingers. The Water Element Power inside of the Moon Essence has been completely extracted and condensed into his Dao Seal.
Yang Kai listened with his ears and frowned. He constantly felt as if there was some sort of strange voice in his head that was trying to tell him something, but when he tried to listen to it closely, the voice would disappear.
He could not help but feel a little creeped out by this and wondered whether something had gone wrong while he was refining the Moon Essence.
Zhu Jiu Yin was no longer in the room with him, and he had no idea when she left. Yang Kai left the room in a flash and saw Yue He standing in wait outside.
When she saw Yang Kai, Yue He’s eyes lit up as she asked, “Young Master, did you succeed?”
Yang Kai nodded subconsciously, “En, I succeeded.”
“Then why did it take so long?” Yue He could not help but feel nervous when she saw the strange expression on his face.
Indeed, refining his Water Element took a long time. Previously, it only took Yang Kai a little less than two months to refine his Earth Element from the Dragon Bead of an Earth Attribute Great Dragon. But this time, he took an entire half-year to condense his Water Element Power.
“It took longer to refine this one because it does not follow the order of the Five Elements,” Yang Kai explained. He was lacking a Metal Element treasure, so it naturally took him more time to refine this Water Element treasure.
But this was not the main point. What made Yang Kai speechless was the fact that he had to divert part of his mind to the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture at all times in order to keep his the Element Powers inside of his Dao Seal in order; otherwise, they would fall into chaos.
This was a bit of a headache for him. Even though it did not occupy much of his attention and would not affect his daily life or his abilities in combat in any significant way, the harsh part was the fact that it could not be stopped for even a moment. In other words, before he could fill in the missing Element in his Dao Seal, Yang Kai definitely could not fall unconscious for even a moment, or that would spell death.
“Young Master has just condensed his Water Element Power and should enter retreat to stabilise it. Why has Young Master come out already?” Yue He looked at him in confusion.
“I have something to ask Senior Zhu. Where is she?”
Yue He shook her head, indicating that she did not know. She had been standing guard here for the past half a year without going anywhere, so how could she know where Zhu Jiu Yin had gone?
Yang Kai swept his Divine Sense over the area and soon found Zhu Jiu Yin’s aura. In a flash, he appeared in front of her.
Yang Kai was shocked when he finally saw her, because Zhu Jiu Yin was lying lazily on the bed while Lu Xue was holding a fan with a disgruntled expression, waving it gently. A mantis head was half-kneeling in obeisance on the floor in front of her, reporting something.
This mantis head looked exactly the same as the one that Yang Kai killed before. Yang Kai thought that the dead had come back to life for a moment, but on second thought, he realized that was unlikely. Da Lang’s head had been blown off by him, so how could he come back to life?
The mantis head he was seeing now had to be a different mantis beast under Zhu Jiu Yin’s command. Such a creature would not be able to enter the Star City normally, but who would dare to stop him if he wanted to enter now that Zhu Jiu Yin was here?
“You’re excused,” Zhu Jiu Yin waved her hand.
The mantis head excused himself and left without even looking at Yang Kai.
After the mantis head left, Yang Kai cupped his hands, “Senior.”
Zhu Jiu Yin raised her eyes to look at him and answered with a hum, “Since you have succeeded in condensing your Water Element Power, should you not be properly stabilizing it in retreat? Why have you come out?”
Yang Kai frowned, “I seem to have a problem.”
“What problem?” Zhu Jiu Yin was surprised.
“For some reason, I feel like there’s constantly a voice buzzing in my head, but when I try to focus on it, I can no longer hear anything.”
“A voice?” Zhu Jiu Yin frowned, “What kind of voice?”
“I can’t describe it.” Yang Kai shook his head. After listening for a while, he jumped, “It’s here again. Senior, there’s no problem with the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture, is there?”
He constantly felt as if something was wrong with this scripture that led to this situation.
Zhu Jiu Yin wondered, “I’ve never heard of this happening before.” Her past Bearer had also cultivated this technique, but he did not mention any signs resembling Yang Kai’s, “Could it be just your own delusions?”
Yang Kai paused for a moment. Hearing what she said, even he himself was beginning to wonder whether it really was just his illusion. And, the extremely faint voice did not really affect him much anyway, he was just a little concerned.
“If you’re worried, you can open your Dao Seal and I will take a look for you,” Zhu Jiu Yin suggested.
Yang Kai shook his head, “Maybe it’s just in my head.”
Zhu Jiu Yin had no ill will towards him since she chose him as her Bearer, but opening up his Dao Seal was equivalent to presenting all of his secrets to her, so Yang Kai was naturally reluctant.
Zhu Jiu Yin did not force him and simply nodded, “Maybe the situation will improve after a while.”
Yang Kai nodded. Then, he changed the subject, “Senior, is there still no news of Metal Element treasures?”
“No. Er Lang came to report on that just now. After searching for so long, they still haven’t found a Metal Element treasure that fits your requirements. I’m afraid there is no longer one available in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary.”
Yang Kai was slightly disappointed, but then he perked up, “If I may trouble Senior again to have Senior’s subordinates search for Yin and Yang treasures that are also above the Seventh Order.”
Zhu Jiu Yin scoffed, “That will be even more difficult to find. The Five Elements treasures in the Seventh Order or above have more or less appeared before in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, but I’ve never heard of a Yin or Yang treasure of the Seventh Order and above appearing. However, there are some that are under the Seventh Order.”
“Senior knows my ambition!” Yang Kai said solemnly.
Zhu Jiu Yin responded, “I will tell my subordinates to look out for them, but don’t get your hopes up.”
“Many thanks, Senior,” Yang Kai bowed and excused himself.
Only after Yang Kai left did Zhu Jiu Yin’s eyes flash as she muttered to herself, “Could it be, the Moon Essence Spirit hasn’t been erased?”
When she heard that Yang Kai had been hearing a strange voice in his head, she remembered the thread of spirituality she had seen in the Moon Essence earlier. Since Yang Kai refined the Moon Essence, then he must have refined and absorbed that thread of spirituality as well. If it had not been erased, it could be inside of him.
But telling Yang Kai such a thing would only cause him to worry, so she simply decided not to say anything. Her purpose was to have Yang Kai seize the opportunity for her to leave anyway. After leaving the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, Yang Kai’s life or death would have nothing to do with her.
Inside of his cultivation room, Yang Kai went back to cultivating so that he could stabilize the Water Element Power that he had just refined. His most important task was to activate the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture and try his best to practice it until it became instinctual. If he could achieve that, then he would not have to be afraid of the technique cutting off whenever he fell unconscious, and of course, the four Elements in his Dao Seal would also not be disturbed.
Zhu Jiu Yin’s million-plus troops were spread throughout all corners of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, searching for Yin, Yang and Metal Element treasures; however, nothing was found even after searching for two years. Yang Kai was filled with hope in the beginning, but slowly, that hope began to run out.
After cultivating for two years, his strength did not increase by much, but the Water Element Power inside of his Dao Seal has been completely stabilized, and he had reached a point where he could bring it out at will. The Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture had also been trained to the point where it had become natural for him to continue circulating it.
Yang Kai had also kept in contact with that little fatty Xu Zhen. That guy was chosen by Zhu Yan to be his Bearer, so he naturally received Zhu Yan’s vigorous cultivation. According to him, Zhu Yan had countless exotic treasures in his possession, and he had also almost fully gathered his Yin, Yang and Five Elements during the last two years, stepping into the Half-Step Open Heaven Realm.
But the World Principles inside of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary were strange. Even though the Elements in their Dao Seals were complete, they could not split Heaven and Earth apart to create a Small Universe in their bodies, which meant they would not be able to make a breakthrough until they left.
Still, his strength was definitely increasing by leaps and bounds and simply could not be compared to the him from the past.
Xu Zhen had also been in contact with Ning Dao Ran and the others, so Yang Kai had been asking him about their news. From this, Yang Kai discovered that just as the little fatty guessed, those Cave-Heaven and Paradise disciples were each chosen to be Bearers by different Divine Spirits. All of them were cultivating in retreat and growing in strength now.
Among them, Gu Pan was caught by Kui Niu, Qu Hua Shang ended up in Fei Yi’s hands, and Ning Dao Ran had been captured by Zhu Jian.
For these Cave-Heaven and Paradise disciples, being strong was both fortunate and unfortunate. Fortunate because they could receive the nurturing of these Divine Spirits. Each of them was freed from centuries of hard work trying to search for or purchase the required materials. Unfortunately, because of their strength, they became pawns for the Divine Spirits in the upcoming Spirit Seizing War.
If they succeeded, then everything would be fine, but if they failed, the consequences were worrying. Who knows how many Bearers died at the hands of these Divine Spirits for failing over the years?
Xu Zhen also said that these Divine Spirits were definitely not the only ones. There were many who had not shown their faces yet, and they had definitely chosen many other Bearers to cultivate in secret. These Bearers may be unknown now, but they were definitely soaring to great heights and waiting for the Spirit Seizing War to begin.
Yang Kai did not befriend many others. Even with Qu Hua Shang, Yang Kai only discussed the Yin-Yang Grand Dao with her. There was also Gu Pan who came from where Zhang Ruo Xi’s ancestors originated from.
He made up his mind that the next time he saw her, he would definitely ask her about Zhang Ruo Xi’s situation.
On this day, Yang Kai felt a fluctuation from his communication bead. He immediately took it out and swept it with his Divine Sense.
Xu Zhen’s message played, “Brother Yang, the Spirit Seizing War is beginning soon.”
Yang Kai was stunned, “How do you know?” He had not received any news, and Zhu Jiu Yin never told him about this either.
Xu Zhen told him, “Zhu Yan told me. As the Divine Spirits who were born here, they had a keen sense towards changes of the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. He said that the Primordial Land will open in one year at the earliest, or three at the latest. When that happens, the Spirit Seizing War will begin, and us Bearers will compete in it.”
Yang Kai chuckled, “Then Brother Xu must be careful. I will not go easy on you then.”
Xu Zhen said, “My strength has increased tremendously now. I may not be unable to best you. Brother Yang should also watch out.” Then, he changed the subject and said excitedly, “Finally, we can leave this damned place.”
Yang Kai was dumbfounded, “Leave?”
Xu Zhen responded, “Does Brother Yang not know? After the Spirit Seizing War, the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary will close. Then we, the outsiders, will be sent out.”
Yang Kai was surprised, “Really?”
“You will know if it’s true or not after asking that Heavenly Moon Demon Spider. It has been this way every time in history.”
This was good news. The Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary was a giant natural treasure trove, and Yang Kai had obtained unimaginable wealth here, even condensing his Earth and Water Element Powers; however, he still did not find any news about a Yin, Yang or Metal Element treasure. It seemed like they were no more in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. In that case, he could only hope to find them outside.
The sooner he left here, the better.
After counting the time, it was truly almost time for the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary to close.
It has been seven or eight years since they arrived here, and Zhu Yan said that the Primordial Land will open in one year at the earliest, or three years at the latest, which is when the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary was to close. This was consistent with the rumours he heard.
After chatting with Xu Zhen for a while, Yang Kai put away his communication bead and left the private room to look for Zhu Jiu Yin.
Zhu Jiu Yin was a little surprised to see him, but she still nodded, “You are here just in time. This Queen has something to tell you.”
Saying so, she suddenly shot a glance to her left and right.
Yue He and Lu Xue both said with guilty faces, “Young Master, please excuse us.”
As soon as those words left their mouths, the two women moved in unison. One of them reached a hand out to Yang Kai and tapped on his forehead. Then, the other shook out a water whip and bound Yang Kai’s waist.
Yang Kai was stunned; then, he roared, “Are you rebelling?!”
His body shook, and strong flames ignited. The two women exclaimed in shock and took a few steps back, their faces growing pale.
But before Yang Kai could ask them what was going on, he saw Zhu Jiu Yin open her small mouth and spit out a spider web that landed on top of him.
The spider web was Heaven Sealing and Earth Locking. Yang Kai was unable to even use Space Principles to escape. When he watched the web fall on him, Yang Kai roared, and a small Sun rose behind him.
Golden Crow Casts the Sun’s Divine Manifestation!
But in the next instant, the spider web wrapped Yang Kai completely inside it, and the small Sun that had just risen also disappeared in a flash.
The spider web seemed to have physical form, but it quickly invaded his body as soon as it fell on him and disappeared. Then, Yang Kai felt an extremely strong confinement force inside of his body that made it impossible for him to exert his strength properly.
“Senior!” Yang Kai was shocked and angry. He glared at Zhu Jiu Yin, “What does Senior mean to do by this?”
“Don’t be afraid.” Zhu Jiu Yin slowly got up and said in a gentle tone, “You should know that I mean you no harm since you are the Bearer I chose. I am just helping you increase your strength.”
“Are such methods needed to help me increase my strength?” Yang Kai sneered. He did not believe her in the slightest. He had the constant feeling that this devilish woman had some mischievous intentions.
Only, what confused him was why even Yue He was helping her with this. Yang Kai felt pained when he looked at her.
Yue He obviously felt a little guilty and did not dare meet his eyes. She softly said, “Young Master, I am only doing this for your own good.”
Yang Kai coldly snorted. Then, he turned back to Zhu Jiu Yin, “Dare I ask how Senior intends to help me increase my strength?”
“Come with me,” Zhu Jiu Yin began stepping outside as soon as she finished speaking.
Even though Yang Kai’s power had been sealed, his movement was unhindered. He shot a hostile glare at Yue He and Lu Xue, who both shrunk their necks in guilt, before following Zhu Jiu Yin out.
Very soon, the group of four arrived at an underground private chamber. Zhu Jiu Yin waved her hand, and lights came on in the chamber that illuminated every last detail.
Yang Kai stared in amazement. He had no idea that there was such a secret room under his own residence, but this was clearly Zhu Jiu Yin’s work. On the floor of the chamber were grooves that flowed with a crimson liquid. He had no idea what it was, but it looked like blood, and yet it did not smell like blood at all.
The grooves covered the ground, outlining an extremely complex and profound array. At the centre of this strange Array was a small altar.
“Go on,” Zhu Jiu Yin pointed Yang Kai over with her lips.
Yang Kai turned away and ignored her, quickly thinking of a countermeasure to deal with her. He still had no idea what Zhu Jiu Yin was up to.
“Childish!” Zhu Jiu Yin chuckled. Lifting Yang Kai by the collar, she threw him onto the altar, which caused the seal inside of his body to tighten all of a sudden. Yang Kai was forced to sit on the altar against his will.
Yang Kai was fuming and accused Yue He and Lu Xue, “Are you ruthless women just going to watch as she binds me like this?”
Lu Xue blushed, “We are not her opponent.”
A complicated look flashed past Yue He’s eyes, but she did not speak.
Zhu Jiu Yin chuckled, “This is all under this Queen’s orders. It is no use blaming them.”
Yang Kai looked coldly at her, “Naturally, I know it is so, but I think it should be time for you to tell me your intentions here, no?”
“The Spirit Seizing War is beginning soon.”
Zhu Jiu Yin sighed, “In one year at the earliest or three years at the latest, the Primordial Land will open!”
This was consistent with what Xu Zhen told him. Just as Xu Zhen said, it seemed like these Divine Spirits who were born and raised here had an incomparably keen sense of the changes in this world. Naturally, if Zhu Yan could feel it, then Zhu Jiu Yin would as well.
Zhu Jiu Yin was surprised to see how unperturbed Yang Kai was, but she went on to ask, “Do you know how many Divine Spirits there are in these Grand Ancient Ruins?”
Yang Kai was frank, “How would I know?”
“Around a hundred!”
Yang Kai was astonished. Even though he knew that there was more than one Divine Spirit in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary, he never thought that there would be so many!
How terrifying a number was that truly? Each one of these hundred Divine Spirits was equivalent to a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master. If all of them left the Grand Ancient Ruins, then even the Cave-Heavens and Paradises would find it hard to compete against them.
“Setting aside those who have no ambition and are content with their current lives, more than half of those old ghosts are dead set on leaving the Grand Ancient Ruins,” She was one of those old ghosts, and more than half would mean at least sixty or seventy.
“These guys each have their own Bearer; in other words, their goal is the same as yours in this Spirit Seizing War. All of them are fighting for the one and only opportunity!”
“And so what if that is the case?” Yang Kai had a fearless face.
“You may be strong, but that does not guarantee that you will last until the end.” Zhu Jiu Yin sighed. Her previous Bearer was the same. Among all of her past Bearers, his strength was definitely at the top, but he still died in the end, keeping her from leaving this place, “That’s why you must get even stronger.”
Yang Kai quickly said, “I also wish to become stronger, but your subordinates were not useful and were unable to find what I nee…” Speaking up to here, his face suddenly changed to one of shock. As if realizing something, his face suddenly went pale.
Zhu Jiu Yin giggled, “Seems like you finally understand it, which makes this much easier.”
With a wave of her hand, all sorts of Metal Element treasures were suspended in the air. There were more than a dozen in total, each one of them emitting strong Metal Power. Each one of them was of Sixth Order!
“The World Principles in the Grand Ancient Ruins are strange, so one cannot exert too much power. It is of no difference whether you refine a Sixth or Seventh-Order Element, but you will see an obvious increase in your strength once you do refine one. Look at how many Metal Element treasures I’ve found for you. Which one do you like?”
But before Yang Kai could protest, Zhu Jiu Yin began introducing each item to him, “You should have this Yuan Magnetic Divine Stone yourself as well. If you refine this, you will be able to cultivate the Yuan Magnetic Divine Light Divine Ability. There is also this 10,000-Year Bronze Essence, which is also not a bad choice. This is an Illusionary Star Sand, and this…”
She introduced the Metal Element treasures one by one with a smile, but in Yang Kai’s eyes, that smile was incomparably malicious.
Indeed, after choosing Yang Kai as her Bearer, she had been nurturing him greatly during the past few years, even teaching him the Defying Yin-Yang Five Elements Profound Universe Heart Scripture without any reservation. While Yang Kai was refining the Moon Essence, she even personally stood guard for him.
But it was not out of goodwill that she did all this for him. Only, the stronger Yang Kai was, the greater her hopes of leaving this place were. The Spirit Seizing War was about to begin, so there was not much time left. Zhu Jiu Yin could not indulge Yang Kai as she had before any longer. Whether Yang Kai was willing or not, she would complete the Yin, Yang and Five Elements in Yang Kai’s Dao Seal so that he could exert even stronger might.
That was how they arrived at this scene today.
A few moments later, Zhu Jiu Yin urged, “Choose one, or I will choose for you.”
Yang Kai shut his eyes and tried to circulate the power in his Dao Seal to break the seal inside of his body.
Zhu Jiu Yin sneered when she saw this, “Then I will choose.” Lifting her hand, she collected an Illusionary Star Sand and put the rest of the treasures away before approaching Yang Kai.
Yang Kai looked at her, “I will not comply with this.”
Zhu Jiu Yin smiled like blooming flowers, “This Queen knows you will not cooperate, but rest assured. I do not need your cooperation. I have arranged this Array just for this day.”
Yang Kai was shocked at her words. He thought that he would be fine as long as he did not cooperate with her; after all, it was he who had to condense the power into his Dao Seal. But now, it seemed like he had underestimated Zhu Jiu Yin. He had already felt that this Array was very strange, and it turned out it was set up to forcibly condense the Metal Element into his Dao Seal.
[Spirit Arrays can even do this?]
He had no idea whether Zhu Jiu Yin was lying to him or not, and he did not have the time to find out. Zhu Jiu Yin had already sat cross-legged a metre away from him and spoke with a solemn expression, “There will be some pain, so just bear with it. If you do not wish to suffer, then you better cooperate obediently.”
After saying so, she formed different seals with one hand while spider silk emerged from the fingertips of her other hand. Countless spider silk threads pierced through the Illusionary Star Sand and drew the Power of Metal from within it.
Closing her jade white hand, Zhu Jiu Yin’s spider silk threads suddenly shot out and entered the array.
The Array rumbled as it was activated, and the blood-red liquid flowed in the grooves, surging towards the small altar and converging on Yang Kai’s body.
The countless spider silk threads hidden in the liquid burrowed into Yang Kai’s body through his pores.
Yang Kai grunted. He felt as if a thousand holes were being poked into him, and he was almost jumping in pain. Following that, a wisp of Power of Metal began invading his body and moving towards his Dao Seal.
Horrified, Yang Kai tried desperately to resist, but to no avail.
Immersing his mind into his body, Yang Kai could see traces of the Metal Element Power about to infiltrate his Dao Seal. Quickly, Yang Kai bit down on his tongue and spat out a mouthful of fresh blood onto Zhu Jiu Yin’s face and snarled, “If you dare do it, then I’ll die here and now!”
Zhu Jiu Yin’s movements stalled for a moment and looked at Yang Kai with her bright eyes, seemingly to see whether he was lying or not. After a moment, she laughed, “Are you trying to threaten me? This Queen is not afraid of you.”
She continued her actions.
Yang Kai roared through gritted teeth, “I swear on my Dao Seal!”
The smile on Zhu Jiu Yin slowly stiffened as she stared at him.
“Come on!” Yang Kai roared, “If you dare to ruin my Dao Seal, I will die here in front of you!”
Zhu Jiu Yin’s face was grim, “You dare threaten this Queen?”
“If you insist, then don’t blame me if I retaliate!” Yang Kai sneered, “My will is for the Seventh Order, and you know this! Yet, you now bear evil intentions toward my Dao Seal! Forcibly gathering a Sixth-Order Metal Element Power inside me, how could I possibly allow you to do so!”
“Are you not afraid that this Queen will kill you?” ZHu Jiu Yin’s eyes were brimming with murderous intent.
Yang Kai sneered, “The Spirit Seizing War is about to begin in a year at the earliest, and three at the latest. Where will you find another suitable Bearer in such a short time? Even if you do find one, how much time will you have to nurture him or her? He or she will surely be defeated in the Spirit Seizing War, and you will have no hope of escaping the cage of this Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary to witness the wonders of the outside world.”
“How dare you!” Zhu Jiu Yin fumed, body shaking in anger.
Yang Kai sighed, “It is hard to find another as excellent as me. Oh, how I truly worry for you.”
Yang Kai’s boasting naturally made her snicker, but she had to admit that this Bearer really was a cut above the rest. Nobody could be clearer than her how strong Da Lang was, only a few in the entire Grand Ancient Ruins could kill him.
And just as Yang Kai said, she did not have much time nor the energy to nurture another Bearer.
The reason she razed the Sword Pavilion Star City and slaughtered tens of thousands of cultivators was in order to find a suitable Bearer. Unfortunately, not a single one of them met her requirements. In a fit of rage, she drowned the Star City in rivers of blood and buried them all.
Yang Kai swore an oath on his Dao Seal, which made it hard for her to continue. This was an oath related to one’s Martial Dao. Once the oath was made, there was no way to break it. If she forcibly condensed the Sixth-Order Metal Element Power into his Dao Seal, then even if Yang Kai did not commit suicide, his Dao Seal would definitely be damaged, and when that happened, it would become completely useless.
How could Zhu Jiu Yin not be annoyed when she was being manipulated by a Junior in such a way?
It was at this moment that a shout suddenly came from behind. Yue He attacked from behind, the Yin, Yang and Five Element Power gathered in the palm of her jade hand, forming a ball as she slammed it down towards Zhu Jiu Yin.
Without even turning back, Zhu Jiu Yin swept her hair back, and her hair suddenly rose up and pierced through Yue He.
Yue He was flung away with blood spraying from her body. She landed on the wall and slowly slid down. Shocked, Lu Xue quickly went over to help her up.
Yang Kai also turned to look at her, and his eyes were dark.
He was not sure why Yue He was helping with this evil act, but once he learned of Zhu Jiu Yin’s intention, he understood. Yue He did not want him to reach the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm. She had always been encouraging him to condense a Sixth-Order Metal Element, but Yang Kai never listened to her.
Zhu Jiu Yin had the means to forcibly condense a Sixth-Order Element into Yang Kai, which was in line with Yue He’s wishes; moreover, since an arm cannot be thicker than a thigh, she had no choice but to cooperate with her.
But Yang Kai’s life was at stake at this moment, so Yue He could no longer sit still. Even though she understood that she was not Zhu Jiu Yin’s opponent, she still had to delay her with her life at stake.
“How dare a cheap slut like you disobey this Queen?” Zhu Jiu Yin had already been given a stomach full of grievances by Yang Kai with nowhere to vent it, so Yue He’s actions were like sending herself onto the spear point.
Swinging her hair again, the black threads suddenly turned into sharp blades that stabbed towards Yue He.
Yang Kai shouted urgently, “If you dare kill her, then I will die here! I swear it on my Dao Seal!”
The speeding hair threads suddenly stopped right in front of Yue He’s face. The threads of hair had already pierced into Yue He’s body, causing the latter’s eyes to go wide in horror. She could feel countless wounds being poked all over her skin, as if even her Soul was going to be pierced through.
Zhu Jiu Yin turned to look at Yang Kai, her delicate face filled with anger, “Is this the only trick you know?”
Yang Kai grinned, “It’s not about variety, but usefulness. Senior can give it a try and see if I have the guts to die in front of you.”
Zhu Jiu Yin was gritting her teeth so hard that they could almost crack. She wanted nothing more than to slap Yang Kai to death right now.
Yang Kai on the other hand remained casual, “Senior should already know about my abilities. So what if I do not refine a Metal Element Power? Who in this Grand Ancient Ruins is my opponent?” He looked proud, “Senior just has to wait for my good news in the Spirit Seizing War. I will definitely obtain the opportunity.”
Zhu Jiu Yin sneered, “And what if you fail to get it?”
“Then I will be at Senior’s disposal!” Yang Kai puffed out his chest, “I know what Senior is capable of. If you really want me dead, then there is no way that I can resist.”
“At least you know that much!” Zhu Jiu Yin’s dark face eased up, and her hair retracted. Yue He let out a stifled grunt, her body covered in blood.
Lu Xue hurriedly went forward to put pressure on her wounds.
Zhu Jiu Yin got up and left with a flick of her sleeves, her floaty voice emerging, “Remember what you said today. If you fail, then you will suffer a fate far worse than death.”
After watching her leave, Yang Kai breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that he had gotten past a difficult moment. It was also a shame since he and Xu Zhen had been in contact with each other all this while, and he was planning to take the opportunity to ask for more benefits for himself. But after today’s incident, he had no way of bringing it up anymore in case he enraged Zhu Jiu Yin again.
The seal within his body suddenly disappeared, and the spider web left together with Zhu Jiu Yin. Strength inside of his body began to flow again.
Yang Kai got up and went towards Yue He.
Yue He’s injuries were not severe, and even though she looked to be in bad shape, the wounds were only skin-deep. With her Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm foundation, she would be able to recover with just two or three days of rest.
Noticing Yang Kai approaching her, Yue He did not even dare to raise her head. She was too ashamed to face him. After crawling up with difficulty, she kneeled in front of Yang Kai with her eyes downcast, and just like a poor aggrieved wife, she said, “Please lay down your punishment, Young Master!”
Tears fell from her eyes as she spoke. She regretted having cooperated with Zhu Jiu Yin, and even though Yang Kai could never have resisted even without her cooperation, she still felt like she had betrayed him, and it drowned her in guilt.
Yang Kai raised a hand and placed it on her head, sighing, “Do not let this happen again!”
After shooting a look at Lu Xue, indicating for her to take care of Yue He, he left in a flash.
After Yang Kai left, Yue He fell limp on the floor and looked up at Lu Xue, muttering, “Did I make the wrong choice?”
Lu Xue asked, “Did you tell Sir about the benefits and harm of directly achieving the Seventh Order?”
Yue He shook her head, “I wanted to wait until we left this place to tell him and to dissuade him, but now, it seems his Dao Heart is firm and determined. Even that person will not be able to persuade him.” Naturally, the person she spoke of was the Proprietress.
Lu Xue sighed. She knew that Yue He’s words were true. Yang Kai would rather swear death on his Dao Seal than refine a Sixth-Order Element. This meant that he had made up his mind to achieve the Seventh Order or die trying.
But nowadays, who dared to achieve the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm directly? His future was bound to be rough.
A month later, news of the Primordial Land’s opening spread throughout the entire Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary.
Nobody knew who spread the news to begin with, but it wasn’t long before everyone had heard of it.
The Primordial Land was about to open, and the Primordial Land was the greatest opportunity in the entire Grand Ancient Ruins. There were countless treasures to be found there, and anything they found could easily allow one to soar to the Heavens. It was said that many powerful Masters from the Cave-Heavens and Paradises had also been to the Primordial Land, and it was the opportunities they found there that allowed them to rise to their current positions.
Countless people were excited at the news, and they were all eagerly waiting. One after another, cultivators rolled up their sleeves as they waited for the Primordial Land to open so that they could enter and seek their own fortunes.
Yang Kai was cultivating peacefully in retreat. Ever since what happened, Zhu Jiu Yin did not try to force him to condense a Sixth-Order Element anymore. On the other hand, she did find him many precious treasures that could be used to increase his strength.
There was no reason to refuse these gifts, so Yang Kai accepted all of them and made a fortune; after all, nothing that could come from the hands of a Divine Spirit could be bad in quality. Zhu Jiu Yin was also doing this for her own sake, so Yang Kai accepted everything with peace of mind.
He also kept in close contact with Xu Zhen.
According to Xu Zhen, he had made a deal with Zhu Yan. If he could seize the opportunity to take Zhu Yan out of the Grand Ancient Ruins, then Zhu Yan would become his Protector for 500 years! The others also offered similar terms and signed contracts with their respective Divine Spirits. Only, the length of time they were asked to be their Protectors differed.
The Divine Spirits also hoped that their chosen Bearers would give it their all in this battle, so they naturally offered some benefits. And, becoming a Protector for these Bearers was the greatest benefit. Each party gave and took, so it was a fair trade.
Yang Kai was red-eyed to hear this. He had also planned to sit down with Zhu Jiu Yin and discuss the same thing, but after the last incident, he really could not find the opportunity to do so. As such, he had no choice but to wait for the right opportunity.
Day after day went by.
A year and a half later, the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary suddenly shook. Following that, a strange fragrance filled the air. Everyone’s spirits were shaken, and none could resist the urge to seek out the source of the fragrance.
Very soon, the eyes of many cultivators were attracted by a seven-coloured glow in the sky.
The glow was an unknown distance from the ground, and it seemed to be far up above, its colours ever-changing as it hung like a canopy over the world.
“This is…” Some people were puzzled.
“Is some supreme treasure being born?” Some people felt their spirits being lifted, and there was greed in their eyes.
“The Primordial Land is about to open!” Soon the mystery was resolved. News about the Primordial Land’s opening had already been circulating around various strongholds, so everyone was waiting for it. Now that the world was showing signs of change, what else could it be other than the opening of the Primordial Land?
“Finally, the day has come! Hahaha, after holding back for so many years, it’s time to soar to the Heavens!” A man laughed and rose up from one of the strongholds, rushing straight towards the place where the glow seemed to originate from. Following that, dense streams of light shot out from each stronghold. Everyone was rushing to get into the Primordial Land.
Hundreds of thousands of cultivators rose up from each of the Human strongholds, rushing towards the Primordial Land. In the blink of an eye, the strongholds, which had been operating for more than ten years, were all empty.
Inside Scarlet Star’s Star City, half of the entire population disappeared in the blink of an eye. There was even a huge Starship with Scarlet Star’s symbol emblazoned on its hull rising up into the sky. Many of Scarlet Star’s disciples boarded the Starship under the leadership of several Managers and headed for the Primordial Land.
Inside Yang Kai’s mansion, Zhu Jiu Yin’s voice rang out, “Boy, it’s time to leave. The Primordial Land is opening!”
Yang Kai opened his eyes and left through the door.
Zhu Jiu Yin took one look at him, nodded lightly, and then grabbed him by the collar, rising into the sky with him.
Yue He came to see what was going on when she heard the commotion, only to see two figures turning into streams of light and disappearing. She quickly gathered Guo Zi Yan and the others before following after them.
In the middle of the dense forest, an old ox that was laying under a tree suddenly stood up and glanced in a certain direction, spitting out human words, “Child, the Primordial Land is opening. It is time for us to depart.”
“En.” Gu Pan appeared out of nowhere. In a flash, she was sitting on top of the old ox’s head and said in a gentle voice, “Thank you, Grandpa Ox.”
The old ox laughed, “Hang on tight and don’t fall off.”
Saying so, he charged off as quick as lightning.
At a certain swamp, a strange, thousand-meter-long snake slithered forward, body stretching up as swiftly as the wind.
The strange snake had two heads and its forked tongues were spat out of its mouth. Creatures scattered wherever it passed, and as it rolled its tongue back into its mouth, an exotic beast that was hidden in the swamp was pulled inside before being swallowed into its belly.
On the left of the snake’s head was Qu Hua Shang, holding her forehead with a worried face, “Senior, can’t we split up? Why don’t you go to the Primordial Land first and wait for me there?”
The strange snake’s right head said in the human language, “We are too far away and you are too slow. At your pace, by the time you arrive at the Primordial Land, everything will already be over.”
“But…” Qu Hua Shang was extremely troubled, “You’re too ugly…”
She could not stop sighing in her heart. The Divine Spirits of the others were all majestic or beautiful as paintings, yet her own was so ugly that she could hardly bear to look at him.
The strange snake fumed, “Me, ugly? You must be blind, little girl. How could you call me ugly? You’re the ugliest one!”
Qu Hua Shang’s face went dark, but she was unwilling to argue with him about this further.
Many millions of kilometres away, a man riding on a leopard spirit beast was laughing and shouting, “Faster, faster! I can’t wait to meet the heroes of this world. I want to see whether they’re greater or if this one is greater!”
The Human-faced leopard Divine Spirit grumbled, “Stinking brat, I’m your Protector, not your mount, so don’t think you can order this Great Aunt around! I’ll throw you down if you keep making noise!”
The man laughed again, “Go ahead and throw me off! If you throw me off, then there will be no one to grab the Innate Spirit Fruit for you!”
The Human-faced leopard Divine Spirit fumed.
…..
One by one, the Divine Spirits moved out, bringing their chosen Bearers with them towards the Primordial Land. The World Energy was in chaos, and only now did the cultivators who fell into the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary realize that there were actually so many powerful existences in this world, so they could not help but tremble.
They had been living here for more than ten years, but only a few of them had encountered Divine Spirits. They never knew that the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary could actually be so dangerous.
Fortunately, most of these Divine Spirits lived in seclusion, not bothering to harm others before. Otherwise, how could anyone still be alive today? Any one of these Divine Spirits was not a being that any of those Humans could fight against.
The Primordial Land was about to open, and a Heavenly Manifestation was emerging. The Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary was boiling with excitement. Countless cultivators were converging towards the Primordial Land from all directions.
In just ten short days, no less than 3,000 people gathered outside the Primordial Land, and this was merely the first group to arrive. More would come as time passed.
A month later, no less than 200,000 people had already gathered outside the Primordial Land. At this point, no more people were coming. Even if there were, they were only a few scattered cultivators here and there.
In other words, almost all of the cultivators who were still living now in the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary were gathered here.
When the Star City was swallowed up by the Grand Ancient Ruins Rolling Fog, there were naturally more than just 200,000 people swept up. There were at least three or four times this amount, possibly more. After ten years had passed though, only so many people remained alive, which showed how dangerous the Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary was.
Now that the Primordial Land was opening, how many would return safely?
Outside of the Primordial Land, cultivators gathered in groups. They were all setting up their own camps, and the Divine Spirits also released their powerful auras without any trace of politeness to claim territories and deter others out of respect and fear.
Everyone looked up at the sky in awe, staring at the ever-changing seven-coloured glow, which was said to be the gateway to the Primordial Land. Only, it had yet to fully open at this moment, so no one could enter. The day the glow became completely stable was the day when this secret land opened.
Qu Hua Shang, Gu Pan, Lin Feng, Xu Zhen, and Ning Dao Ran were all present and gathered in one place, laughing and talking about their encounters of recent years.
Behind the five of them, the five Divine Spirits watched them from afar, not only looking after the safety of their Bearers, but also coveting the lives of the others.
If they could kill a few more Bearers here, then it would mean less competition later.
The extremely faint sense of hostility was pervasive, but under mutual deterrence, none of them dared to strike.
The two-headed strange snake slithered over, silently spitting out its forked tongues before retracting them quickly.
Qu Hua Shang turned her head in anger, “If you dare eat him, then I will leave immediately!”
The strange snake’s left head said, “Eat what? What’s there to eat?”
Qu Hua Shang gritted her teeth, “Open your right mouth.”
The strange snake’s right head turned its head aside and looked up at the sky with its two snake pupils.
“I’m leaving!” Qu Hua Shang got up decisively.
“I won’t eat them anymore, I won’t!” The left head shouted. Then, as the right head opened its mouth, a wet cultivator was spat out. The cultivator had a bewildered look on his face after landing on the ground, not knowing when he had been scooped up into this Divine Spirit’s mouth. As soon as he realized what had happened, his face paled and he shrieked before turning into a stream of light and flying far away.
The strange snake coldly snorted, “You really are troublesome, you ugly girl. There are so many people here, what does it matter if I eat one or two of them!”
The faces of the cultivators nearby paled in an instant and all moved away from the strange snake.
“Watch it, I’ve got my eye on you!” Qu Hua Shang pointed at her eyes and glared viciously at the strange snake.
The corner of Xu Zhen’s mouth twitched, “Uh… Senior Fei Yi is quite interesting.”
The strange two-headed snake was the Divine Spirit, Fei Yi. Xu Zhen could not help but feel envious of Qu Hua Shang for having such a firm hold of this Divine Spirit. His experience in speaking with Zhu Yan had not been as smooth. During the years he spent with this Divine Spirit, he had experienced a fair share of beatings.
“So unbearably ugly!” Qu Hua Shang said with a look of disgust on her face before she changed the subject, “How come Brother Yang isn’t here yet? He should have arrived long ago.”
Qu Hua Shang had been furthest away from the Primordial Land’s entrance, and even she was able to arrive three days ago, yet she saw no sign of Yang Kai, so she could not help but wonder.
Xu Zhen answered, “I contacted Brother Yang earlier, but something seems to be hunting him down!”
Qu Hua Shang was shocked, “Hunting him down? Who?”
Xu Zhen responded, “The Heavenly Moon Demon Spider’s enemies teamed up to ambush them on their way here, which held them back for quite some time.”
Qu Hua Shang was stunned.
“Huh? Here he comes.”
Xu Zhen suddenly turned towards a certain direction. There, a fierce aura could be seen rapidly approaching. In the blink of an eye, it had already arrived in front of them, taking the form of a gorgeous young girl that was holding onto someone in her hands. Who could it be but Yang Kai?
Yang Kai was latched onto the woman’s body at this moment like an octopus, holding onto her for dear life and complaining incessantly, “Why do you have so many enemies? How did you survive all this while, woman?”
Zhu Jiu Yin sneered, “Do you really think a few pitiful weaklings like them can fight against this Queen? If it were one-on-one, then this Queen would have killed them off ruthlessly already!” As she said that, she stared coldly at Yang Kai, “Aren’t you going to let go?!”
Yang Kai suddenly came to his senses and let go of her. Standing next to her, he tidied up his own clothes, and he could not help but sigh as he thought back to their previous encounters on their way here.
In this one month, they had encountered at least five ambushes. Several Divine Spirits had been lying in wait for them on their way here, and they fought more than a dozen battles, both big and small. The worst fight was when they were being ganged up on by three Divine Spirits. Zhu Jiu Yin was also amazing to have been able to hold off those attackers and get them here safely; however, they did waste a lot of time on the way.
They had just arrived when another five powerful auras rushed over behind them. They were five Divine Spirits who had been chasing after them all this way, and all of them had taken on Human forms. There were both male and female, young and old. All of them were looking over with eyes filled with hatred as if they could not wait to skin Zhu Jiu Yin alive.
Yang Kai’s heart was pounding, “Senior, they’re here. Are you able to hold them back?”
Zhu Jiu Yin responded crisply, “No!”
“Then, we’re in danger.”
Yang Kai had a grave expression, “We’d better avoid them for now and come back when the Primordial Land opens.”
“Don’t worry.”
Zhu Jiu Yin reassured him, “Since we are here, they won’t try to attack us anymore.”
“Why?” Yang Kai did not understand.
“They also have enemies. Starting a fight here will only be troubling themselves!” Zhu Jiu Yin sneered.
Just as she said, after these five chased them to this place, even though all of them were filled with fury, none of them tried to attack Zhu Jiu Yin. Yang Kai could also keenly sense that there were strong auras locked onto these five Divine Spirits. Those seem to be their enemies as Zhu Jiu Yin was talking about.
“Even though they won’t dare to strike at me so simply, you should still watch out. Better not let them hurt you.” Zhu jiu Yin reminded Yang Kai, “Remember their auras. If you encounter their Bearers in the Primordial Land, then kill them for me!”
Yang Kai frowned, “They have Bearers, too? Why don’t I see them?”
Zhu Jiu Yin smirked, “Naturally, they are hiding among the other Humans and unwilling to show themselves. But since they came here, that must mean they have already chosen their Bearers. There is no way they would come here empty-handed.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Understood.”
Turning around and looking behind him, Yang Kai was stunned. The portal to the Primordial Land was magnificent. The seven-coloured glow twisted and turned as if a great mystery was hidden behind it.
Around the outer periphery of the Primordial Land, Divine Spirits with powerful auras occupied different pieces of territory. Some hid their Bearers in the crowd while others stayed close to protect them.
Yang Kai was shocked. At a glance, there were at least fifty Divine Spirits gathered here!
How terrifying a force was that? These fifty Divine Spirits were equal to fifty High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Masters. Perhaps only a few of the Cave-Heavens and Paradises had such a powerful heritage.
Most of these Divine Spirits had taken human form, but there were also those who maintained their true bodies, each one as big as a mountain, appearing majestic and powerful.
Yang Kai saw Kun Sha, who was glaring coldly at him, not at all hiding his murderous intent.
There was also Fei Yi, Kui Niu, Zhu Yan, Bi Fang, Nu Fang…
Yang Kai had only heard of these Divine Spirits but never seen them before. Today, Yang Kai had an eye-opening experience.
These Divine Spirits were not all the Divine Spirits that could be found in this Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. Zhu Jiu Yin had told him before that some Divine Spirits were satisfied with the situation and had no intention of leaving the Grand Ancient Ruins. Naturally, they would not come to interfere in this chaos.
However, Yang Kai was surprised that he saw neither Dragons nor Phoenixes among the Divine Spirits. He was able to obtain an Earth Attribute Great Dragon Bead previously in the Crouching Dragon Mountains, so he thought that Dragon Clan members existed in this Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary. However, now it seemed that the Great Dragon that passed away was the last of its kind.
This made him feel slightly sad. Yang Kai never made a contract with Zhu Jiu Yin through these days because he was hoping to find a Great Dragon. If he could find a Dragon here, then he would have better options.
Yue He and the rest had arrived long ago and were looking forward to the Primordial Land’s opening. They were able to find a spot and were waving incessantly in Yang Kai’s direction.
After meeting up with each other, they asked Yang Kai about what he encountered during the past month and were soon quite shocked.
After some small talk, Yang Kai said, “Senior, I think it’s time you tell us about the Primordial Land.”
“I know nothing.” Zhu Jiu Yin shook her head.
Yang Kai was shocked, “How could you know nothing?” He had never asked Zhu Jiu Yin about the Primordial Land before, thinking that she would explain everything to him when the time came. Who knew that he would get such an answer when he took the initiative to ask her?
“It’s not as if this Queen can enter the Primordial Land, so how should I know?” Zhu Jiu Yin snorted. If the Divine Spirits could enter the Primordial Land, then why would they need to choose a Bearer? They could have gone in to fight for the opportunity themselves.
Yang Kai frowned, “Even though you’ve never been inside, didn’t you have a Bearer before…” Speaking up to this point, Yang Kai suddenly understood. It was true that Zhu Jiu Yin had Bearers in the past, but they clearly died inside, so it was reasonable that she knew nothing about what happened inside.
“Then, what do you know? What should I do after going in?” Yang Kai tried to ask for the next best thing.
Zhu Jiu Yin said, “I only know that the treasures inside are countless, but the most important one is the Innate Fruit Tree. The Innate Fruit Tree will appear every time the Primordial Land opens, but only one Innate Spirit Fruit can be picked before it disappears. For native Divine Spirits like us to leave the Grand Ancient Ruins, we must consume that Innate Spirit Fruit, and that is why it is called the Spirit Seizing War.”
“Innate Spirit Fruit!” Yang Kai’s eyes lit up. Anything that can be described as Innate must be extraordinary.
Zhu Jiu Yin rolled her eyes, “Forget about it. Eating the fruit will not bring you much benefit. Us Divine Spirits are born and raised in this Grand Ancient Ruins, but we are also trapped by it. Fortunately, this Innate Spirit Fruit was created especially for us Divine Spirits. If you can bring it out for me, then you will definitely be rewarded.”
Yang Kai nodded, but in his heart, he was unconvinced. He had some doubts about her words. Zhu Jiu Yin was probably afraid that he would eat the Innate Spirit Fruit, and that was why she said what she did. Whether it was useful to him or not was yet to be known.
“You will have to search for the Innate Fruit Tree yourself. As for what it looks like, you will also have to identify it by yourself. Don’t have any funny thoughts. Just be a good boy and bring that spirit fruit out to me, and this Queen will make sure it is worth your time.”
Yang Kai nodded repeatedly, thinking that once the spirit fruit was in his hand, then it was not up to her to make the terms.
As if sensing what Yang Kai was thinking, Zhu Jiu Yin shot him a deep look, and a sardonic smile emerged on her lips.
“Senior, I’m going to meet some of my friends over there. I hope Senior can accompany me.” Yang Kai pointed to where Xu Zhen and the rest were standing.
“What are you seeing them for? No point in complicating things on purpose. This Queen needs to adjust her breathing so be good and wait here.” Zhu Jiu Yin coldly snorted before sitting down cross-legged. She had also expended a lot of energy during this past month, so she naturally wanted to recover as soon as possible.
Yang Kai was speechless. Glancing over at Xu Zhen and the others, he shook his head.
Without Zhu Jiu Yin to shelter him, he did not dare move around by himself. The Divine Spirits chasing after Zhu Jiu Yin would not easily let go of the opportunity to kill him. As long as they could kill him, then Zhu Jiu Yin’s plan would fall through, so they naturally wouldn’t be hesitant about attacking.
Time passed slowly, but the 200,000 people gathered outside the Primordial Land were all waiting quietly.
Ten days later, the ever-changing seven-coloured glow suddenly froze for a moment before distorting and warping at an even faster speed. At the same time, the World Energy in the entire Grand Ancient Ruins Boundary was madly gathering at this place, drawing up a gale. Rocks and sand flew, and suddenly, the light disappeared from the sky.
All the Divine Spirits were shaken, and they all lifted their heads to look at the Primordial Land’s portal.
“It’s opening!” A Divine Spirit shouted.
The 200,000 people were also shaken, and all of them turned their eyes to the portal.
Zhu Jiu Yin also opened her eyes to look into the sky, “Brat, come here.”
Yang Kai went over obediently, “What orders does Senior have?”
“I only have one sentence for you. This trip can only end in success, not failure. If you fail, then you will be worthless to me. You know what that means, right?” Zhu Jiu Yin looked indifferently at him.
Yang Kai nodded expressionlessly, “Naturally.”
“Good.”
At the same time, many Divine Spirits were also talking to their respective Bearers, some encouragingly, others threateningly.
Gu Pan stood in front of Kui Niu, saying seriously, “Rest assured, Grandpa Ox, I will definitely get you the Innate Spirit Fruit and bring you out of here.”
Kui Niu transformed into a kindly old man with an all-white beard and long eyebrows, smiling, “Just do your best. The most important thing is that you return safely.”
Gu Pan nodded hard.
Fei Yi had also taken on a human form with two heads and a wicked appearance. Forked tongue slipping out of his mouths, he hissed, “Ugly girl, if you fail, then do not blame this King when you are eaten.”
“Yes, yes, yes, all you think about all day is eating. I’ll also grab that Innate Spirit Fruit and have a taste of it.” Qu Hua Shang fumed.
Fei Yi’s two faces paled, “I was just kidding! En, you must bring me the Innate Spirit Fruit. I will definitely offer you many benefits.”
On the other side, Xu Zhen was covering his head angrily, “Can’t you just talk normally? Why do you keep hitting me?”
Zhu Yan slammed his fist down, causing a visible bulge to appear on the little fatty’s head that glowed brightly. Zhu Yan then snorted, “If you do not bring me the Innate Spirit Fruit, then you will receive more than just a beating. You hear me?!”
Xu Zhen gritted his teeth, “Just you wait! Once I bring you out of here, I will make you my mount for five hundred years!”
Zhu Yan sneered, “If you really do have this ability, then what does it matter for this King to act as a mount for five hundred years?” Divine Spirits lived extraordinarily long lives, so five hundred years was a mere snap of a finger for them.
“If you succeed, you live. You fail, you die!” Kun Sha declared succinctly to Lin Feng.
Lin Feng’s face was dark, “I don’t need you to tell me that.”
Not far away, Ning Dao Ran had a relaxed look on his face as if nothing could disturb him. Zhu Jian transformed into a strong, middle-aged man, looking worriedly at him, “Boy, put your heart into it. That Innate Spirit Fruit means a lot to me. When it comes time to snatch it, then you have to snatch it. Do not show those people any mercy.”
Ning Dao Ran saluted him, “Rest assured, Senior. I will do my best.”
Zhu Jian sighed, “If only that was the case.”
He felt indignant. Why did he choose a guy like this to become his Bearer? Someone as relaxed as him would not be able to achieve great things.
…..
World Energy was continuously converging towards the Primordial Land’s portal. The seven-coloured glow was becoming more and more solid and radiant.
Three days later, the glow suddenly reached a peak. Following that, it was as if a pair of invisible hands split it apart, revealing a seven-coloured passage that connected straight to the Primordial Land.
Everyone was shaken at the sight and fixed their eyes at the centre, but they were simply unable to see the scenery beyond the portal.
The Primordial Land’s portal was finally open.
Among the crowd, several figures turned into streams of light that entered the seven-coloured passage in a flash, disappearing in the blink of an eye; however, some people were unable to hold back and rushed ahead of the others.
Everyone was making their move. More than 200,000 cultivators were rushing to the portal. Even though the portal was large, there were too many people gathered in this place. As the cultivators poured in, some of the people were squeezed out of the seven-coloured passage, falling into a deep abyss.
Screams came, and in front of everyone’s eyes, the cultivators that were forced out of the seven-coloured passage had their flesh peeled from their bodies. In less than three breaths of time, they had become nothing more than skeletons. Following that, the bones that remained of them also broke little by little, turning into dust that scattered away, completely dissipating into the world.
“The outside of the passage is dangerous!” Someone shouted. Face paling, the cultivator quickly retreated.
The cultivators who realized this also did not dare to crowd the portal anymore lest they were squeezed out and met with death.
Many Divine Spirits were looking happily at this scene, and those cultivators were all cursing at that. The Divine Spirits obviously knew about this, yet none of them came and informed them of this fact. Quite clearly, their deaths were not worthy of mention in the eyes of these Divine Spirits. They only needed to look after their own Bearers. Why should they care about anyone else?
Hundreds of lives were lost, and the danger beyond the passage became clear. The cultivators that came after were all careful to stay away from the edges of the passage.
Soon, however, another change occurred. Some cultivators who were moving at the centre of the passage also screamed. Their flesh left their bodies, and they turned into a set of bones.
The cultivators around them were shocked. They all turned their heads to look at each other, none understanding what was going on.
But this did not happen to just a single cultivator. A dozen others met with the same fate, dying inside the seven-coloured passage.
Many cultivators were perturbed at this sight and had no idea how these people had suddenly died in the passage.
However, someone suddenly realized what was happening and shouted, “Open Heaven Realm! They’re all in the Open Heaven Realm! Those in the Open Heaven Realm are not allowed to enter the Primordial Land or they’ll die!”
When they heard him shout, everyone came to their senses. After careful thought, it was indeed true that the dozen who died were all in the Open Heaven Realm.
Under the leadership of the Managers, the group from Scarlet Star were just about to step into the passage when the Head Manager stopped them. Chen Tian Fei and the others behind him were all covered in cold sweat.
They had almost stepped into the passage just now, and if they had done that, then they would have died on the spot.
Not far away, Yang Kai’s face sank as he turned his head to look at Zhu Jiu Yin, “Senior, are those in the Open Heaven Realm not allowed into the Primordial Land?”
Zhu Jiu Yin looked deeply at him, “If those in the Open Heaven Realm could enter, then would I have to seek you out to be my Bearer?” The Sword Pavilion’s Pavilion Master had a cultivation in the Sixth-Order Open Heaven Realm. Zhu Jiu Yin would naturally have chosen him instead.
“Why didn’t you say that earlier?” Yang Kai was furious.
Zhu Jiu Yin smirked, “Is it too late to say it now? It’s not like you have anything to lose.”
Yang Kai held back his anger, “Not too late!”
But this was troublesome. He was thinking that he could bring Yue He and the others with him. It would be best if he could get the Innate Spirit Fruit in the Primordial Land, but if not, then he could just run away with them.
Zhu Jiu Yin was strong, but Yang Kai was also prepared, so it may not be impossible for him to escape her pursuit.
But now, all his plans had gone up in smoke. Yue He and the others could not enter the Primordial Land. They had to stay behind with Zhu Jiu Yin, which was just like leaving a hostage in her hands. Unless Yang Kai did not care about the life or death of Yue He and the others, then he would definitely have to face her after coming out of the Primordial Land no matter what.
Zhu Jiu Yin obviously anticipated this, so she did not tell Yang Kai on purpose just to catch him off guard.
They both knew each other’s plans well, but in the end, it was Zhu Jiu Yin who came out ahead.